The Sun that shines through the Leaves
by tofufuu
Summary: Komorebi finds a unique job at a particular firm, unsure of what to expect. The only thing she knows is that it's filled with scary (but hot!) men, vicious ex-ladies, and a fat salary. She's not sure what she's supposed to get out of it, but she also can't seem to leave. !AUModernWorld, ItachixOC. Mentions of SakuraxSasuke and DeidaraxSasori!
1. Chapter 1

"Secretary…" I clicked on the link to the job posting, bookmarking it into my browser. I was in a desperate need of a job- any job as long as it got my sorry ass off the chair in front of my computer, and made money to start paying my student loans.

I quickly applied filling in all the necessary information, attaching a resume and my cover letter to the online application. Most places didn't need cover letters, but knowing my luck, I provided one anyway. Extra work and effort never hurt anybody before, right? My phone rang multiple times during the entire time I was doing the application. I growled, picking up my phone. "What?"

"Did you forget, un?"

I literally smacked my forehead with the palm of my hand. "I'm so sorry, Deidara, I got too caught up applying for a job." I sent in my application without double checking my information. No way I could mess up spelling my name and address anyway, pfft. I turned the computer monitor off, shoving the phone between my ear and my shoulder as I scuffled away, grabbing my coat and purse.

"Sounds like something you'd do… un. You owe me popcorn!" The dial tone pierced through my ear. I sighed, throwing my phone into my purse. I rushed downstairs after locking the door to my flat, nearly tripping a few times on the way down from the fourth floor of my apartment building. As usual, it smelled like the combination of a wet bus and leftover banana peels in a trash bin. But, eh, this was the smell of my home. Used to it.

I speed-walked a couple of blocks, almost breaking into a run for the bus. But if it's anything, Komorebi would never run for the bus.

Oh, Komorebi's me, though most people shorten it to something else in my name (I've gotten Komo, Rebi, More, and Kobi before). I thought it was a stupid name, but the people who had taken me away from my home had fell in love with it just as much as they had fell in love with me as they laid their eyes on the little devil child I was when I was younger.

_"Komo-chan, your name is not stupid. Do you even know what it means?" I shook my 6 year old head. "It's a word describing the moment when the sun is filtered through a tree's leaves. Just like how you shine brightly no matter what you're going through."_

Tch. Stupid meaning.

Bright was far from what I call myself.

I hopped up the stairs of the theatre after I zoomed off the bus, bumping into many people along the way. I muttered empty apologies and 'scuse me's, before I finally got to where Deidara was.

I waved at him, completely out of breath as I steadied my palms atop of my knees as I took a few deep breaths, completely panting. Gosh, I was so unfit.

"Geez, Komo, you're acting like you're 50 and can't run from point A to point B without having a fit, un."

I glared icicles at the blonde, his sheepish smile coming out to play. Boy, did I want to rip that mouth off him and throw it to the crazy dog living in the flat above mine. "I have mild asthma, you asshole." I wheezed as that came out.

Deidara reached into the back pocket of his jeans, pulling out a familiar purple circular object. "You left this at my store this morning, un."

I snatched my puffer away from him, nearly shoving the entire thing down my throat. After fifteen minutes of me calming down. "I hate you a lot of the times, but today you saved me." I dragged him up the escalators as Deidara handed me my ticket. "What do you want, fatty?"

"The usual." I nodded, my breath finally all caught up to my lungs. His usual was caramel and butter popcorn mixed into one bag with a giant blue slushie. I ordered a size up so the both of us could share. We walked towards the usher- some wrinkly old woman who looked like she was about to swallow her own dentures.

Her shaking hand took our tickets, ripping them carefully, said shaking hand returning them to us. "My, my, so nice to see such young love. You're making my heart pound!" She croaked.

We both exchanged looks before we both almost burst into laughter. "No, no, no. No way I'm dating him. We're just friends, Miss. He's basically a brother to me."

"So bashful!"

I don't think her hearing aid worked anymore. I left it as is, Deidara snickering at me while I glared at him some more. Maybe one day I'll actually stab him with my eyes. Why stop a man with one look when you can kill a man with one look instead?

I had met Deidara at the orphanage I was sent to. I was sent there because my parents couldn't afford me after their business had went bankrupt, though I wasn't sure about the entire story. I could barely remember what I ate in the morning today to know every little detail about my life. But I did remember meeting Deidara so clearly; he was the only one who didn't have a friend because all the kids didn't like him. He was mean, loud, and was basically the orphanage's bully. The kids would cry every time he was finished talking to them, or their face was black from some explosion or other. The orphanage caretakers shook their head at him; he was hopeless. Deidara had no remorse for the children he hurt.

Well, until I came and (kid)punched him in the jaw. The reason was because he took the doll my parents gave to me before I was moved out of my home and threw it into the sandbox. He tackled me in the sandbox, the kids screaming as they ran. One kid was crying, running up to the caretakers and sisters, informing them that there was some "rough-play" at hand. By the time they came to the sandbox, mine and Deidara's clothes were dirtied with wet sand, and the both of us were at each other's hair. Literally.

He was tugging on mine while I was tugging on his little pony tail. We both got serious detentions for it. We basically had clean up duty together, setting up the table together, gardening together, cleaning the chalkboard together. Whatever punishment you can think of, we did it. But the punishments had drew us closer together (well, me to him, he still didn't like me… I don't even know if he even likes me now…), and I had found out that he was the way he was because unlike a lot of the kids here, he was abandoned when he was born. He never knew his parents and had been in the orphanage all his life. He saw kids come and go, with no luck of finding foster parents because he was the abandoned one.

Lucky for him, I was as close to family as he could have gotten.

"Move your fatass, un." Yup.

I chuckled, moving a step up to the middle row of the cinema. We both sat down, settling in. This was how we spent our Tuesday nights together. Although I was going broke, I'd do anything to spend time with this little fucker once a week.

After all, he's my only family too.

* * *

><p>Deidara and I had split our ways, Deidara headed towards the flats next door. Both of our buildings were mirrors of each other, the contractor cheesily naming this compound as "The Twins". Both apartments were identical in layout, but just separated into two different buildings. There were no elevators (the apartment was probably about 6 or 7 stories high), and it was one flat per floor.<p>

We waved our goodbyes, exchanging goofy faces. We were definitely adults. I trudged up the stairs, getting pretty tired by the time I hit the first step of the fourth floor. God, I wish I could be fit.

I opened the door to my place, turning on the lights, and locking the door behind me. I slipped my shoes off, padding to my computer to turn the monitor on. After showering and cleaning myself up, I finally sat down in my (uncomfortable) chair, swiveling to look at the blue-ish monitor screen. It was an old computer, but it's not like I had enough money to buy the computer that I had wanted anyway.

I really needed this secretary job.

I saw the posting, and though not much was said about the responsibilities or the salary, I took the risk anyway. I shuffled through my browser pages, coming back to my application. I skimmed through, reading the files attached.

Oh.

Shit.

My eyes came across the title, **"Stupid_Broke_Ass_needs_job_pleasE_ "** for the .pdf file I uploaded for my cover letter. I widened my eyes, fully feeling the rush of red to my face. Had I really sent that as my cover letter instead of the other one? Shit, shit, shit… I probably ruined my own chances with this job, watching it head out the door with a two-finger salute in my head.

I slumped in my chair, murmuring to myself to try and calm the nerves. I was tired; I needed to sleep soon.

"It's ok, Komo, they'll see it tonight and forget about it tomorrow morning, throwing my application into their trash folder. No problemo, everything will be ay-okay!" I smiled to myself, nodding a few times for (my) reassurance.

Tomorrow would be a good day.

* * *

><p>AN:

Soooo, I haven't really written anything in a while. I've used Fanfiction back at around 2008, but I floated away from it doing other things and stuff. I've been recently getting back into the Shippuden arc because of reasons, so I got inspired (after lurking for so long in the Naruto section, shame on me really). Hopefully, this doesn't go to shit and uh yeah.

Thanks for taking the time to read! Favourite (if you don't want to send a review) so I know approximately how many people are reading!

I don't know where this is going yet, but I've got a lot of ideas about where I want to go with it.

Until next chapter,  
>Tofufuu<p>

_Edited (11/25/14): Cover art by Sakimi chan, all rights belong to her! Please find her on Facebook, Tumblr or Deviantart to fully see the piece! I have it as my desktop background, haha!_


	2. Chapter 2

I woke up groggily to the sound of my phone ringing. I groaned, taking it in my hand to check the time.

7:55 a.m. Are you fucking kidding me?

I answered the call, voice croaking out like a frog who hadn't croaked in a while. "Hello?"

"Good morning, may I please speak to Komorebi-san?" The woman's voice was calm, but not much emotion present in it. She seemed to be scribbling something down based on the scratching of a pen to a notepad.

"This is her speaking." I sat up in bed, rubbing my eyes.

"Ah, my name is Ogura Yomiko, and I'm calling on behalf of your application as recruitment for a position to be a secretary. The company had informed me that they were interested in interviewing you, bring you to the next step in the process." I almost jumped for joy, if it weren't for the fact that I was still only half awake. "I would like to confirm your approval to move to the next step?"

I nodded, but suddenly remembering she couldn't see. "Yes!" I was almost a little too excited.

She chuckled, more scratching sounds ensued. "Alright. They have given me three time slots for you to choose from. They have today at three-p.m., tomorrow at two-p.m., or the day after for ten-a.m.

"I'll go today." I piped up, immediately thinking of going back to sleep, then waking up to get ready again.

"Alright, I'll let them know right now. You'll be receiving an email shortly after to tell you of the details, such as addresses and phone numbers. Should any problem arise, I will contact you again. Have a nice day, Komorebi."

"Thanks so much, Ogura-san." Both ends clicked, my groggy mind taking over again as I fell back asleep.

* * *

><p>I nervously tugged down my dark gray skirt, hoping it didn't ride up after sitting down in a chair for a while. My light blue shirt was tucked neatly into said skirt, a matching fitted blazer completing the outfit. I wobbled along in my heels, not knowing how to work this pathetic excuse for shoes. "Right this way, Komorebi-san." A secretary dressed in all black showed me to an office. The name plaque on the door read<em> Hoshigaki Kisame<em>. It was a simple silver plaque with engraved black letters.

"Kisame will be here shortly to brief you, so please have a seat while you wait." I smiled at the secretary. She nodded and left, closing the door behind her. I observed the desk before me- a high tech computer with a bunch of blue sticky notes posted on the side. There was a name cardholder on his desk (simple silver one), with a figure beside it. It was a man surfboarding, except there was a shark emerging from the ocean and chomping onto his board. Gosh, this Kisame guy might be a sadist…

When was the last time I had an interview though? Before college? Right… I had to work that dingy supermarket job in order for me to save up for some spending money. Oh gosh, that supermarket job really does bring back memories… I used to build really weird displays for certain products. Deidara would always criticize how crude and ugly they were, that they needed some spark (usually ends up him planting a small firecracker explosive and me getting in trouble for something I didn't do).

I giggled, but immediately stopped when I heard the door open. "Thanks, Opal." I heard a deep murmur. The deep voice guy closed the door behind him, and I gulped. Oh god, it's happening. A lava erupted in the pit of my stomach, making it gurgle in protest.

"Komorebi-san?" I stood up abruptly, almost kicking down the chair.

"Y-Yes!" I turned around and I nearly fainted. There was a man with blue-ish looking skin and spiky blue hair. His eyes were round and small, but calculating everything you did. He had gills(?) on his face, though I had no idea why because I don't see me wearing a damn oxygen tank either. A crooked grin was pasted on his face, showing off his sharp triangular teeth. He was clad in an all navy-blue suit.

"Slow down, Missy. No need to break my office. Please, have a seat again." He strode over to his chair, plopping down into it. He put his hands behind his head, leaning back into his chair. "So, what brings you to my office?"

My jaw dropped. What do you mean? I'm here for a damn interview! "I applied for a secretary job on a job-recruitment website. I'm here for an interview after they pre-screened my application and approved." I gulped, but sitting straight up in my seat, trying to recompose myself. I will not let him know I'm nervous.

"Ah, are you the one who sent in that crazy cover letter?" A pink tinge covered my cheeks, and I nodded. He chuckled, "Well, Komorebi-san, normally I wouldn't have let in such a vulgar message. But you made very valid points in your letter, and it seemed genuine enough."

What?

"Please, let me read your letter." Please, don't. He leaned lazily onto his desk, clicking around on his computer. "Let's see…"

_"Dear whom the fuck this may concern,_

_My name is Komorebi, a stupid meaningful name for a stupid girl who can't seem to get anything right with her life. But enough about me and my hatred for my name, I would like to sell myself to your secretary job. And no, I don't mean being a prostitute, though I'm probably completely guilty of watching a few Adult Videos about a secretary doing those things._

_I would be a really great secretary for a few reasons. I'm organized- and by that, I mean I do everything in the fastest way possible to ensure that I have the most free time afterwards. Why will my desk always be neat? Because my head is messy with stupid paperwork- but don't worry, I'll still get everything done. Procrastination is the least of my cons, and will not interfere with this job. I'm also very educated in the business field, so if you ever need me to help you bullshit some work, I can definitely do that for you, as my theses was pretty much well written bullshit. If you are wondering, I have a double major in Economics and Marketing, and a minor in Literature. If you asked me, I feel like I'm actually over-qualified for this job, but hey, whatever floats your boat. The third reason why I would be good with this job is because I don't meddle in gossip. High school drama was never a problem for me because, well, I never even went to enough classes or school in general to keep up with who's with who ,and who did what. It was never in my interests anyway. I still passed with flying fucking colours, grabbing a decent scholarship for post-secondary. There are more reasons, but I really don't think I've read this far down for a stupid cover letter that isn't even required for any job._

_I would list some flaws here, and of course I have some, but fuck it, I'm not here to bring myself down. I'm already desperate for a job, I could work a corner if I wanted to. Please hire me._

_A desperate, over-educated, jobless graduate student,_  
><em>Komorebi"<em>

I winced, hearing my entire cover letter from the mouth of Kisame. It was something I wrote as a joke for myself and also a way to vent off steam from the lack of response with other companies when I was applying to jobs. "I can e-explain!"

"Explain, then." Kisame resumed his position of hands behind his head, a toothpick hanging out of his mouth. When the fuck did he get that?

"Uh, well, I-I was having a lot of trouble finding jobs. Everywhere I had went to said I was overqualified, and ended up turning me down. I wrote that cover letter as a way to vent some steam off… I didn't mean to attach it to my application. If you want, I can give you my appropriate cover letter right now."

Kisame drummed his fingers on his head for a moment. "Sure. You took the effort to bring it here anyway." I dug through my briefcase, pulling out a file folder with my cover letter in it. I handed the sheet to him, Kisame skimming through it before he threw it into the recycling bin. He yawned, and suddenly my pits started to sweat. Oh my god, he probably thought my actual cover letter was shittier because it was so fake!

"Your real cover letter is shit. I liked the other one. It's not professional- not at all, but I'd still hire you. You seem like you're genuine." I must've dropped my jaw on to the floor. Kisame chuckled, "You're the forty-third person we screened this week. Not many people make it past this point. In any case, I would've rejected you if you sent me your original cover letter. However, we're looking for someone who seems to be able to hold their ground in our industry, while being absolutely genuine to their feelings and to their coworkers."

What? I know I have a minor in Literature, but the words that Kisame was spewing seemed to be even worse than the bullshit I pulled in my college days.

"So…?"

"So, I'll let you proceed to the interview."

"You mean," I cleared my throat, slightly shifting forward in my seat. "This isn't even the interview?"

"No, Missy, this is the screening to the actual interview. I'm just relaying for the Boss."

I choked, "And you think your actual Boss is going to hire me? Sharkie, you must be crazy." I slapped a hand across my mouth as soon as those words came out. I regretted them as much as the time I got a tattoo of a Koi fish on my shoulder blade.

Kisame snickered (I wasn't sure if it was a laugh because of his cold-bloodedness and all). "With some training, I think you can do it."

I nodded slowly, the familiar pink cloud coming back to my face. "When is the next interview?"

Kisame pulled up the sleeve of his blazer. "Eh, in fifteen minutes. That's when Boss gets back from his meeting anyway." I nodded again, losing the ability to speak. "I can show you the way to his office." We both stood up, Kisame giving thumbs up to whom I assumed was Opal. Opal smiled, slightly bowing to me.

I returned the favour, giving her a nervous smile. I was led through a corridor to a completely separate room with two frosted glass doors. There were probably blinds on the other side of the door, but they seemed to have been pulled all the way up. Kisame opened the door on the right, and lightly pushed me into the room. "Boss'll be back soon. Just take a seat, for now. Do you want any cofffee?"

"No, thank you though." I smiled and Kisame nodded, closing the door behind him.

The room before me was magnificent. The windows were tall and so open, it looked like I was about to fall out of the building itself. The view was breath-taking; it was a skyline of the city, the ocean peeking out in the background. In the centre of the room was a large, dark oak wood desk, a (much more comfortable-looking than mine) black leather swivel chair behind it. A high tech-looking computer was on the desk as well. Both sides of the room had scenic paintings hung up with tall; with oak wood shelves, and cabinets on one side, and a small seating area on the other side. I looked at his desk as I took a seat in front of it, noticing there was a crystal ashtray (excessive if you asked me), a picture frame and a name plaque that said _UCHIHA ITACHI, CEO_.

Wait, what?

Wait, wait, wait.

No way.

I heard the door opened and I immediately stood up, bowing at the sight of a man. "Good afternoon." My words felt jumbled as they left my mouth. I straightened myself out again, locking eyes with, holy shit, the most beautiful man in the world. He had shiny black hair, tied effortlessly in a low ponytail, and a pale complexion to contrast it. His eyes were black and had little to no emotion in them, well except for his deep frown lines that made it look like he was frowning all the damn time. He was dressed in an all-black suit with the exception of his tie, a striped and navy pattern adorning it.

He walked towards his desk, motioning to my seat. "Please, sit down." Oh my god, his voice was pure honey to my ears. I took a seat, watching Itachi opening a manilla folder with my name on it. He sifted through the pages in it, seeming to take mental notes for himself. "Komorebi is such an interesting name. Shame it was spent on the likes of you."

Wow, I'm not sure if I should take back all the compliments I made in my mind.

"I see that you have a double major and a minor. How long did it take you?"

I want to sound confident. "Four years, as per usual."

"Hn, you probably could've done it in three. I'm assuming you did a lot of skipping."

I'm officially offended by now. "Actually, I-"

"I can also see that you have no parents, and yet you're self-sufficient enough to live on your own and afford decent things in life."

"I-"

He continued, "I'm appalled, by your lack of work experience. I'm not even sure how you passed our screening."

"Sir-"

"Kisame must've came drunk to work again. I guess I'll have to scold him once more…"

"Excuse me," I almost lost my self-control, but I gripped onto the arms of the chair, my knuckles turning white. "But if you are not here to interview me, then I'll be on my way. I will not sit here and let you ridicule my application. If you are not pleased with your employees and the way that they screen recruitments, then I suggest you take out your distress on them, not me. I'm currently being ordered to go here, or do this, and in fact, just like you, I have no idea." I cleared my throat, looking straight at him in the eye. "Though my parents left me at an orphanage, and though I never liked my name, it feels like a damn good fucking honour to be called Komorebi as a gift from the parents who would rather give me up than let me die from lack of resources and support." I stood up, smoothing out my suit. "Thank you for your time anyway, Uchiha-san."

"Sit down."

"No." I walked (more like stormed) out of his office, not even bothering to say goodbye to all the employees who greeted me with a smile this afternoon.

* * *

><p>"Deidara, I'm so upset." I muffled through my arms. I was currently at his coffee shop, loitering the front bar.<p>

"You didn't even get to do anything, un."

I sighed, moving my head to look up at him. "Deidara, it's not even about the job anymore. I've never been more frustrated because I've been ridiculed by the most powerful man in this city. You're right, money makes people nasty."

Deidara poked my head, making me wince. "Who cares about him, un. Stop being such a downer, un."

I pouted, shifting my hands underneath me, sitting on top of them. "You're right… again." I gave him a small smile. "Thanks for being with me through this, Deidara."

Deidara scowled, all the ugly coming out to play on his face. "Don't think we're friends yet, un."

Knew it.

I laughed anyway, knowing I wouldn't have gotten out of this rut any faster without him. "Welp, I'm going to go back home and eat some ice cream, then continue looking for a job. Wish me luck."

"I hope you end up working at the corner down the street. The current one there is too damn loud when she gets business."

I scoffed, "At least she's making money."

I sat with a half-melted tub of chocolate ice cream, the condensation making a small puddle on top of my desk. I had already applied to four different office jobs, preferring to land one where I could use the skills I obtained from university. I leaned back in my chair, full from the ice cream.

God bless my metabolism. But this was probably why I was unfit as shit. I'm just a sack of unhealthy contents.

What the fuck am I doing with my life?

Before I could continue my strong of negative thoughts, my cellphone rang, making me jump out of my chair. I picked it up, the caller unknown. "Hello?"

"Come back to the office tomorrow. I have unfinished business with you." Click. What the actual fuck? I knew that golden honey voice from anywhere, but why would he want me to go back after I disrespected him at his own game? Well, the even better question is, do I go back?

Well obviously.  
>I was told that if I could, I'd work the streets already, so why not?<p>

* * *

><p>AN:

I'm constantly writing this story to try and fit in as many chapters before I leave to go back to school at the end of the week, so I'm updating fast now, but once school starts up again for me, it'll probably slow down. Let me know what you guys think or if you have any requests to make!

Thanks for reading!  
>tofufuu<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

I sat in the waiting room, cup of joe in my hand from Deidara's shop. I had decided to come thirty minutes early so I could finish the coffee and then brush my teeth afterward. I hated the bitter aftertaste of coffee, and I'm sure as hell no one would want to smell it in my breath either. I sipped on the black liquid, thinking of any possible reason that I would be coming back. The only one I could think of was so that he could yell at me some more before kicking me out of this building and permanently not allowing me back.

Eh, oh well.

I finished my coffee and walked up to the reception desk, asking her where the washroom was. She gave me simple directions down the hall, and so I left to go to the washroom to brush my teeth. I pushed open the door, the smell of sugar perfume and cleaning disinfectant filling my nose up.

"Oh my god, did you notice how mad Itachi-san was last night? I mean, it seems like he's always mad, but it looked like his frown lines were deeper than ever!"

I stifled a laugh, sliding my briefcase onto the sink counter. I rinsed my mouth, squeezing an adequate amount of toothpaste onto it. I brushed, watching my reflection in the mirror. I was wearing a black suit today, a white button-up shirt peeking out from my blazer. I had on black nylons and black heels as well. The wavy mass of hair on my head was tousled effortlessly into its place, and my makeup was kept simple as well. I didn't think I was particularly pretty or anything, but I did like the colour of my eyes. They were green with specks of brown floating about in my eye colour.

"Miss?"

I jumped, nearly swallowing my toothbrush. I looked to my right, locking eyes with a pink-haired, sea foam-green-eyed woman, another woman with long blonde hair and brilliant blue eyes standing behind her. Both were very pretty, but it almost hurt to look at the pink-haired one since she was wearing such bright colours. I nodded, unable to speak with the brush in my mouth.

"Sorry to bother you, but would you happen to have floss?" I nodded, reaching into my makeup bag and pulling out a blue square-shaped container. I handed it to her, the woman smiling back at me. "Thanks."

I spat out the toothpaste, rinsing my mouth out by cupping my hands under the faucet and bringing the water into my mouth.

"So, do you work here?" The woman inquired before threading some floss between her pearly whites.

I shook my head. "Nope, but I got called back for a beat down. Thought I'd at least look nice and smell decent while it happened."

"Beat down?"

"Yeah, I yelled at the prick Uchiha-san because he was ridiculing my application."

Both jaws from the pink-haired girl and her friend dropped. "You what?"

"It's not like I'm working for him anyway." I shrugged. "I don't tolerate that kind of behaviour from anyone, even if you own like a quarter of the world."

Pinky-head handed me my floss back. "Wow… That's some guts you have there. I wish I could do that with his brother…"

"You could. So what if they fire you? They'll probably end up needing you anyway because you've been doing your job for so long."

Pinky-head blinked, nodding in affirmation with me. "That's a different mindset. I'm Haruno Sakura, by the way."

I shook hands with her, smiling. "I'm Komorebi." I looked at my watch. "Ah, shit, I gotta go to Uchiha-san's office so he can make fun of me some more." I sighed, Sakura chuckling at me.

"Everything will be fine. Itachi-san might be mean, but he just doesn't have time for bullshit."

I snorted, "Well, Benjamin Franklin said that Time is Money, and since he has so much money, he also must have the time."

* * *

><p>"Come in and have a seat." God, I wish his voice would stop melting my brain. I took a seat in the same chair as yesterday, facing Itachi's back. He was looking out his window, studying the traffic on the street below us. "Why do you think I called you back?"<p>

I relaxed a little in my chair, placing my briefcase on the floor beside my chair. "The only reason I could think of was because you wanted to yell at me some more, and turn the self-esteem I had left into a pile of mush." I shrugged when he turned around to raise an eyebrow at me. "I honestly couldn't tell you why you decided to call me back."

"I want to hire you."

"Pardon me?" My voice probably went a couple octaves higher than it should've.

"I want to hire you as my personal assistant, head of all other secretary jobs in this office."

I stood up abruptly, the chair rocking back and forth a little violently. "Please, explain."

Itachi sighed, taking a seat across from me, motioning me to sit back down. "I've thought about what you said last night." Wow, I actually made a permanent impression in his mind. "Though you've showed nothing but hot-headedness yesterday, you also were able to argue with harsh points. The bit you said about your name was quite interesting."

I sat back down slowly in my chair (basically sliding into it). This literally sounded like my thesis- saying things to prove something that didn't make sense.

"You're the first person I've screened in three years. All other applicants have failed." Wow. "They were either after the salary, or my company's secrets." That explains why there's so many screenings.

"I'm sorry, but I didn't apply to be a personal assistant. I had just wanted a simple secretary job so I could ease my way into the business industry."

Itachi locked eyes with me, and I swore I saw red flash in his eyes. "I'm offering you a fifty-thousand salary, entry-level."

My jaw dropped and I choked on the air. I coughed a few times, my face turning red. "Fifty-thousand is too much. I'm desperate for money, but I could do this job with a thirty or forty thousand dollar salary."

"Fifty-thousand or nothing."

What kind of ultimatum am I worth…?

"I'll do your stupid personal assistant job."

A ghost of a smile graced the (beautiful) man's lips. "Good. Use that fifty-thousand dollar salary and buy yourself some nice clothes. You look like a zombie."

I glared at him, watching him click around on his computer. "I'm your personal assistant, not your personal model. I'd rather use that money to find my biological parents."

Not much was spoken between us, the only sound was coming from the printer. Itachi got up and retrieved the papers from the printer. It apparently was my contract, and it was for only a year. It basically said that I could get booted from my work anytime during the year (depending on what I did), and that anything I did with the company was confidential, otherwise told. It also said that I could be devoting personal time to the job, but it was at Itachi and mine's discretion.

I signed each page he told me to, and with each signature, a piece of my soul was being sold away to one of the most powerful men in the world.

"When do I start?"

"Tomorrow. I will have my old personal assistant come train you for a couple of days." Itachi organized the contracting, shoving it into the familiar manila folder from yesterday. "Research on the company before you come in tomorrow. See you at 8." Itachi took out a black folder, looking through it. Heh, he wasn't even going to bother and say good bye.

Fine by me, Boss.

* * *

><p>"Fifty-thousand dollar salary, hm?" Deidara narrowed his visible eye at me. "Does that mean you can owe me my one hundred dollars for buying you that Super Moon collectible necklace… un?"<p>

I sheepishly laughed, scratching the back of my head. "I'll treat you to dinner with my first paycheck. You can choose the place."

"About time, un."

He had all the right to say that. I mean, maybe not being an ass about it, but definitely asking for favours. We went to high school together, but when college time came around, we both went to different schools and lost each other for three years. He pursued a degree in Food Sciences with a minor in some business degree in order for him to open a good business. He did his program in three years to try and get out as fast as possible. When he graduated (I was the only one invited), he moved back to our current city, coincidentally finding a flat next to mine. Throughout the first year back, we were both on rough patches (him with his business, mine with my theses), and yet he had ended up helping me more than I thought.

Deidara had treated me to more dinners than I can count, and he even went to my classes for me when I was sick. I ended up having to clean his apartment for a week for doing those things, but I thought it was a fair trade off.

Hey, he's still my family, no matter how many explosive pranks he's played on me throughout our childhood.

* * *

><p>I arrived promptly at 7:55 a.m. at the Uchiha office building, waiting for Itachi to pop up at the office. I had a horrible habit of being late to everything, but today I knew that if I was late, I wouldn't hear the end of it for the rest of my career.<p>

Itachi made fun of my clothes last night so today I wore something more appealing. I wore a white blazer and matching trousers. I paired it with a hot-pink dress shirt on the inside (a couple of buttons left unbuttoned), and pulled all my hair up so I could show off my outfit. I thought I looked pretty good, I mean, considering I've been dressing plainly the two days I saw him.

At 8 on the dot, the Uchiha emerged from the corridor, one hand in his pocket, and a woman trailing behind him. Wait… wait… Sakura? "Good morning." I bowed my head slightly as they approached. I locked eyes with Itachi just in time to catch him giving me a once-over with his eyes.

Mission accomplished!

I followed them into his office, Sakura and I taking a seat in front of him. "Haruno-san, you will take Komorebi-san through a training process for the next couple of days. Report back to me twice a day, after lunch and at the end of the day about what you have taught her and her progress. You are dismissed." The both of us bowed, Sakura leaving the room first. I followed her out, Sakura closing the door behind her. She motioned me to the room next to Itachi's office. When we got in, she closed the door, and then excitedly grasped my hands into hers.

"Komorebi! I'm so excited to see you working here!"

I chuckled. "Me too. You were Itachi's old personal assistant?"

Sakura nodded. "Yeah, but I got moved to being Sasuke-san's assistant when he came back from oversea projects. Both are pretty similar on terms of what they're looking for anyway, but you'll get the hang of it."

"Why did they move you to being Sasuke's assistant? Couldn't he have just hired is own?" I furrowed my eyebrows.

I watched as Sakura's face rose in colour, rivalling her own shade of pink hair. "I-uh…" She tripped all over her words, becoming bashful in front of me. "I… I had drunk sex with Sasuke…?"

This time, it was my turn for my cheeks to turn rosy. "Oh my gosh, Sakura, you could've just said it was a personal reason…"

"Hehe, sorry…"

Sakura gave me a tour of my own personal office. It looked like a smaller version of Itachi's and I only had decent-sized windows. There was a bookshelf full of books and file folders with labels written in all sorts of different languages. My desk was empty at the moment, with only a computer and a small calendar on my desk. There was an empty name-cardholder, Sakura informing me that my business cards should be coming in sometime this week.

"Oh, also, I don't know if this is important to you, but your room is sound proof."

I raised my eyebrow, setting down my bag. "How did you know?"

Sakura fidgeted on her spot, face slowly heating up. "I-uh…" She poked her index fingers together. "I…had drunk sex with Sasuke… here?"

I shivered, the image springing in my mind. "Oh my god, you once had jizz all over this table, Sakura-san, this is so inappropriate right now…" I rubbed my temples. "Please, show me the rest of my responsibilities."

Sakura took me on a tour through our floor. We were the head office which was why our floor was always buzzing with talk about our company and future plans. When I had researched about Uchiha Investors Corp., I found that we were a leading investor in big brands and also in many entrepreneurs who have made it big with their interesting products. Investing and finance really weren't my forte, but I wouldn't mind learning a few more things. The reason why Itachi made his family company so successful out of all the years it stood on this street was because he had a really good foreseeing eye on future negotiations and such. I wish I could admire him, but he's kind of an ass (his ass is beautiful, though).

Sakura did a rundown about some responsibilities I had to do daily. It included (but definitely not limited to): getting his morning coffee ("Three milk, one sugar!"), filing the papers in his room that were left out from the night before, sorting through the applicants that wanted the company to invest in them, sort through the types of media that wants to talk to Uchiha, sorting through emails, answering phone calls and directing them if needed, and these were only the basics of working this job. Most of it sounded easy enough, just needed to stay on top of my game. I would also eventually have to make presentations for Itachi so he didn't have to do it. I may also give these presentations, depending on where Itachi was. I was basically his personal slave if you asked me; I'm not even just his secretary or personal assistant anymore.

Sakura had left me alone to get familiar with my job on my own, but all she did was leave me overwhelmed. Already, during the morning, I had read countless emails, answered numerous phone calls, and wrote up so many sticky notes that my computer monitor was already filled with them. I was reading through some files, looking at different applications who were interested in us. I called a couple of them filling in missing information regarding their application. Itachi was looking for companies or entrepreneurs who were unique and had interesting things to bring to the tables. I wasn't sure how I could pre-screen them for Itachi, but Sakura had given me some tips, so I know I could do it with time.

The door to my room opened, Sakura's head poking in. "Hello, Komorebi. I just briefed Itachi how our morning went. It's time to eat lunch now, so the four of us are going to go eat together and bring anything interesting with us." Ah yes, meetings during lunch. When I thought Uchiha Itachi couldn't have been any more of a workaholic.

"Alright, I'll be with you guys in three minutes. I'm just going to reorganize my desk." I quickly grabbed a couple of folders I thought were adequate to talk about during lunch, and a few other notes for Itachi. I grabbed my jacket and bag, locking the door to my office behind me. I met up with Sakura, Sasuke and Itachi down at the main lobby, all three of them looking rather gorgeous compared to me, the new girl.

I mean, Sakura wasn't dressed extravagantly or anything, but she was wearing the latest designs from a brand I keep seeing in some magazine, her hair in a perfectly-cut bob. Gosh, she was so stylish. The two brothers were clad in all black suits (as usual), Itachi with a red tie and Sasuke with a navy tie.

I bowed to all three of them, as I approached the group. "Good afternoon. Hope your morning had went well." Sakura smiled, while the other two didn't say much. We walked outside, a car taking us to a nearby restaurant. It was called- oh, obviously- Fan, the Uchiha Logo right next to the word. It looked very posh outside with all an all-black exterior. The employees greeted the brothers cheerfully, leading them to a specific table upstairs, secluded from everyone else at the restaurant. I sat next to Itachi, across from Sakura at the table.

"Is there anything you don't eat, Komorebi-san?" Sakura's voice broke me from my thoughts.

"I eat anything." Apparently, we didn't get a choice to pick what we wanted to eat because this was Itachi's way of testing the Chef's quality in a surprise test.

"So, let's start with you, Komorebi-san. What would you like to talk about?" Sakura had begun to lead the discussion. Thank the fucking lord she was here, or I would be shitting my pants at how silent these guys were.

"Well, these three applicants stood out to me the most. For this particular company and its values, I would push my choice to the traditional tea shop franchise." I drank some water, wetting my throat a little. Itachi shifted in his seat at the thought my idea."I've done a little bit of research, and although we have investments in a little bit of everything, we only had investments in traditional inns across the city, and yet no affiliations with traditional food places. I thought it'd be a good idea to expand ourselves in that territory." Sakura nodded, impressed with my quick observations.

"Do you have any idea how much it'll take to keep this shit alive?" First time I heard Sasuke's voice. Oh wow, golden syrupy voices must run in this family. Too bad, so does their bad temper.

"Actually," I flipped Sasuke's page in the folder. "It's on this page. They were really rough calculations, and I still have to get used to the program on the computer, but these are the numbers I came up with." Sasuke read through the numbers. Knowing he was in charge of the financial side of the company made me a little nervous. I really hope I didn't mess up the numbers…

"Good." My heart took a leap for the moon. "I'll look into it later." Sasuke tucked the folder into his briefcase. The rest of the time, while the food was making its way out (it tasted heavenly), everyone had shared some concern or another. It was interesting to hear the Uchiha brother's minds working in front of me, and the way they interacted with each other was something many girls had dreamed to see. They were so passionate about their work that I totally forgot that the both of them were basically devil's respawn.

Sakura had mixed some things up, embarrassing herself. I saw a flash of a smile on Sasuke's lips, and at that point I could only imagine them having sex on my desk. I shivered.

"Anything else to mention?" Itachi stared at me funny.

I brushed it off, focusing on the work at hand. "Actually, yes. I have a few messages for you." I took out my notepad. "There's a charity event hosted by one of your investment shareholders at the end of the month and they are wondering if you'd like to go." Itachi shrugged. I took the liberty to write '_No_' in my notebook. "MQ has called, wondering if you would like to do an interview and 4-page spread with their magazine. The last time you did something like this was four months ago." Itachi nodded, so I wrote '_Yes_' beside it. "And the last thing, someone called, demanding to talk to you on the phone. I denied them several times because each time they couldn't give me a reason for me to connect their call to your line."

"Name?"

"Karuta Hachi."

The entire table froze, and I suddenly wondered if I hit a taboo subject.

Sakura scratched the back of her head, "K-Komorebi-san, you can't keep denying Uchiha-san's ex-wife to talk to him."

Well, shit.

* * *

><p>AN:

Seems like I've been getting a lot more readers! I'm hoping you guys think it's good? Please let me know if I made any mistakes. I'm trying really hard to keep every in character, but I'm always open to suggestions and critique!

tofufuu


	4. Chapter 4

"You denied Itachi's ex-wife from talking to him? Haha, that's gold, un!" Deidara laughed.

"Deidara, you're drunk, go away." I sighed, leaning back into my chair. We were currently at some pub near our house, and by we, I meant Deidara, his boyfriend, and I. His boyfriend was Sasori, some red-haired twink (though both of them looked like twink material to me) who usually didn't say much. I had known Deidara was gay since he came back from college because when I went over to his place one time, I found a stack of gay porn under his bed.

Classy.

Deidara cheered my glass of beer. "Seems like your first day was successful, un." He took a big gulp from his glass. "Cheers."

I rolled my eyes, taking a sip of my own beer. "Sasori, control your damn boyfriend."

He nodded, taking the half-filled glass from Deidara's hand, Deidara protesting quite quickly. Sasori downed the glass, his cheeks slowly turning as red as his own hair. "Sasori-danna, you shouldn't have done that for me, un! Now we know how you get in b-"

I quickly tuned out their conversation, not wanting to hear where it was going. I brought the cold glass to my lips and drank, surveying the crowd. The pub was pretty packed, apparently some intense game was going on tonight. Most of the crowd was male with the exception of their girlfriends who were towed along into their drunk festivities. I felt sorry for those girls, but hey, they could've said no and joined their girlfriends with other things.

I looked back and saw that Deidara and Sasori were on the verge of a make out session. It was ironic because where we were sitting, a giant pride flag hung above them. It was part of the LGBT movement last year where this pub hosted a week's worth of bar hopping along with a string of other pubs. For those reasons, Deidara chose to come here often when he would bring Sasori along, so they could publicly display their affections with no worry. Though that sounds stupid, the whole ordeal was still fresh in this city, so I don't blame them at all.

"Well, since you guys are so into each other at the moment, I'm going to dip. See ya later." I put down a bill under my empty glass (which I had so efficiently chugged), and got up to leave the two love-turtles alone.

I left the pub, the fresh air wrapping around my senses. It was a cool night, but nothing I couldn't handle. I was in the pub district, with festivities for gay people sprinkled through the area, so there were a lot of homosexual couples with the occasion of heterosexual ones.

I spotted a very familiar figure across the street, helping someone into a car. I squinted my eyes- Oh my god, is that Itachi? What is he doing here? Shouldn't he be like, I don't know, doing work at the office and then pulling out his sleeping bag so he could work as soon as he woke up?

Holy shit.

What if he was here because he's mad that his wife left him for a girl? Oh my gosh, his wife must be Bi! Or a lesbian and probably teamed up with someone so they could take his money! Oh god, I feel so sorry for Itachi now; I take back all the bad things I said about Itachi and his work. He must be a women hater now because the one woman he devoted his time and money too turned out to be only using him for her own selfish needs.

"Don't find me ever again." Oh wow, I heard him so loud and clear- wait, when did I creep up against this lamp post so I could eavesdrop him- Wow, Komorebi, you're just the best.

He slammed the car door shut, running a hand through his (sexy-ass) hair. He looked up and locked eyes with me. My blood froze, turning myself away from him.

"Komorebi-san?"

I meeped and made a break for it, running in the opposite direction as my home. "I'm sorry!" My voice must have echoed throughout the street- I'm hoping it bounced into the ears of my Boss.

* * *

><p>"Good morning." I murmured to the receptionist, Opal. She nodded, smiling at me.<p>

I made my way through the office, greeting many people along the way. "Morning, Missy." I locked eyes with Shark-face.

"Morning, Kisame-san. Hope you had a wonderful weekend."

Kisame handed me some files. "It was wonderful. Nothing like a business dinner with Itachi."

I chuckled, taking the files from him. "See you later."

I walked through the semi-familiar corridor to Itachi's office, thoughts about Friday night replaying in my mind. I shook my head, putting it behind me. _Whatever he does is his own business. I'm only his personal assistant, not his counselor._ I opened the door to his office, surprised that Itachi was already in. It was unusual for him to be earlier than me, though I guess maybe not since he is the boss and all.

He was on the phone, his back turned towards the door. He turned around and I bowed in apology, ready to retreat back into the corridor. Itachi held up his hand, motioning for me to stay in his office. I nodded, closing the door behind him.

"Hachi, I already told you, didn't I?" He sighed into the phone, his index and thumb pressed against the bridge of his nose. I set down his coffee, and made my way to the paperwork on top of the cabinet file waiting to be put away.

"I won't tolerate this. If you can't handle it, you shouldn't have agreed to it."

More murmuring over the phone.

"Make an agreement with your lawyer and then send the paperwork to mine. We'll talk about this another day; I have work now." He hung up his cellphone (I didn't think he would actually have one for personal use). He sat down in his chair in a huff, sighing once more.

I finished the pile of papers. "Is there anything else you need me to organize in here?"

"No. Any messages for me?" Itachi took a folder off a pile of folders on his desk, looking through it.

"Yes," I took out my notepad to read from. "The PR people from MQ emailed me back saying that they're ready to proceed with the photo shoot whenever you're available. They'll be coming here to set up so they can take your pictures in the most natural environment for you. They'll be doing the interview after the shoot."

Only scratching sounds were heard, Itachi scribbling onto some of those papers he was looking out with this fountain ink pen. "Friday is good."

"Okay, I'll get back to them in a moment. Would you like to request anything for me to do?"

Itachi put down his pen, tapping the papers lightly against his desk to straighten them out. "Yes, mail this out to the teahouse franchise we discussed about Friday." He handed me the stack. "And one more thing," He swivelled his chair to look at me. "I apologize for Friday night. I didn't mean for you to see it."

I shook my head furiously. "Please, don't apologize. At the end of the day, you're my Boss and what you do out of this room is your business." Wow, that was easier to say than I thought.

"I wish I could explain to you, but like you said, it's best if we kept our own affairs at bay."

"I told Kisame-san that I'm not the type to meddle in gossip, so don't be too concerned." I smiled.

Itachi's lips almost curved upward, but I'll take it as a smile anyway. "Thank you."

The rest of the morning went by pretty fast. Sakura came by to brief me on how to do specific work involving PowerPoint presentations and writing up documents for the Boss. Afterwards, I did my work accordingly; I made a good amount of calls and kept my head positively clean. I mean, it was hard when Itachi had told me to not worry about anything. I was almost worrying about his welfare, but then realized that he was still only my boss. We weren't even close to being acquaintances at the moment.

"Gotta go photocopy this…" I murmured to myself, getting up and heading over to the photocopier room. I read over the documents on the way, making sure that there were no typos and everything was formatted properly. I was so busy with the documents that when I walked into the room, that I immediately dropped the pile I was holding onto the floor. My face heated up, reminding me of that one time I left my bacon in too long in the microwave that I actually burned it.

Sandwiched in between the photocopier, and Sasuke, was a bright red (rivaling me) Sakura. Both of their clothes were disheveled. And I quickly bent down to pick up the papers, the loss of words overwhelming me. "S-sorry." I mumbled.

Gosh, what's with me and being surrounded with couples?

I hurriedly picked up all the sheets. "I'll just go use Uchiha-san's photocopier." I mumbled, nearly tripping out the door.

I rushed to said man's office, forgetting to knock on his door when I burst in. He looked up from his work, before moving his eyes back down. "Can I help you with something?"

"Um, I, can I use your photocopier instead?"

Itachi rose an eyebrow at me. "If you must."

I walked to the machine, my hands unknowingly shaking. I glared at my hands, willing them to stop as I started up the machine. "Did something happen with the photocopier in the room?"

"Oh, uh, no?" I hadn't intend it to sound like a question.

"Hn." My hands had stopped shaking by now. I photocopied the rest of the papers, taking a breath of relief. I looked over at Itachi who was sipping on his third cup of coffee. "It's ok if you scold them, you know."

My eyes widened. Me, scolding his brother? "Um, how did you know?"

"Kisame tells me that he often catches them in that room."

I nervously laughed, twirling a piece of hair between my fingers. "I mean, how did you know it was about your brother's relationship with Sakura-san?"

Itachi shrugged and motioned me to sit in front of him. "Haruno-san comes over quite enough for me to know what's going on."

"I don't mean to go back on my own words about everyone has their own business, but are you okay with them doing things like that?"

Itachi got back to scribbling things down with his ink pen. "Their relationship is not my business, however, I preferred if they kept it more privately to themselves. My brother still likes to do what he pleases at the end of the day."

I sat there, unsure of what else to say. I stared at the ashtray a top of his desk next to his picture frame. I still didn't know who was framed there, since I haven't approached his desk closely enough to see. I saw that there were specks of ash on it; Itachi probably thought it was clean when he wiped it down. "Uchiha-san, I know you smoke. Though, there's nothing wrong with it and I'm sure there's times where other company leaders prefer company when they do talk about business and smoke cigars at the same time," Itachi looked up from his work, waiting for me to continue. "And I'm hoping I'm not being out of line when I say this, but I'm sure that when you have your own family, you wouldn't want your kids to worry about your health due to smoking."

I thought Itachi had widened his eyes at my indirect approach to get him to stop smoking, but it was just my eyes playing tricks on me, after all, I've seen too much already. I smiled, getting up from the seat. "Lunch is in five minutes. I'll see you downstairs in a bit."

I spotted the couple and Itachi, the couple already making their way out of the door. Itachi had been kind enough to wait until I caught up with them. We walked to the same restaurant and took the same table. Sakura had asked me to direct the meeting again. I mentioned a couple of independent companies, needing the help of our investments to get them booming. Nothing too interesting today.

Itachi was pretty silent the entire time, but when Sasuke had made a comment about Sakura's clothes, that's when he spoke up. "Sasuke, if you're going to keep a relationship with Haruno-san, please avoid doing it at the offices."

Sasuke glared at Itachi, scowling. "Excuse me, but what I do is none of your business." His eyes shifted to my face. "Did she tell on us?" He spat out, and I swore I felt jabs to my face from his eyes.

"No, but I knew the moment she talked about the photocopier room. Kisame tells me about it all the time."

"Kisame is a shark, what does he know about it?" Sasuke's voice was growling lower and lower with every passing moment.

Itachi sighed, taking a bite out of his food. "I'm not saying you can't date Haruno-san. I'm just saying I'd like you to stay professional while at work."

"Says you, hypocrite." I gulped at Sasuke's words, poison dripping from each and every one of them. "When you were with Hachi, you let her drape herself all over you, letting her seduce every single nerve and sense in your body, and look at the both of you now."

Itachi had put down his eating utensils. "That's en-"

"It was a miracle at first; I didn't know my brother was capable of love, and yet here he was with a woman whom seemingly made him happy."

Sakura tugged on the sleeve of Sasuke's suit, pleading him, "Sasuke, sto-" I watched both of the brothers playing verbal ping-pong with each other.

Sasuke continued, "But the day came when she up and left you on your own, taking away 40% of our stocks with her." I covered my mouth, shocked at what he was spilling. "And yet you still haven't the nerve to divorce her. It's only because you care about that stupid ki-"

"That's enough, Sasuke." Itachi was strangely acting calm the entire time. Though, I know it was only acting because his knuckles went white and his palms were red with his nails digging into it. "All I'm asking you is for you to keep your relationship private, not public. Don't make the same mistake that I did."

Sasuke shut his mouth up at that point. I exchanged looks with Sakura, the both of us just as tense as the moment with the two brothers. Luckily, we were pretty much finished with our food so we could leave. Sasuke had left in a huff, Sakura trailing after him.

Itachi had stayed put, not budging an inch. "I apologize you had to hear all that." Itachi said after a few moments of silence.

"It's alright." It's so rare to get apologies, but gosh, it was quite something else when such a powerful man was doing it. "I didn't expect Sasuke-san to blow up, that's all."

"I didn't either, but I should've known considering we're related." I managed to laugh at his small jab to his own family. "Keep this conversation between us, alright? I don't want Kisame budding into my life more than what he already does."

I nodded. "Of course, Uchiha-san."

Juicy gossip with Deidara!

* * *

><p>I had met up with the blonde the next day for our movie night after my work. We ended up ordering pizza together and ate at my place since Sasori was still snoozing at his.<p>

"Komo, you have better gossip than the magazine under my bed, un."

"The magazine next to your porno stash?" Deidara choked on his pizza and I smirked in victory. Serves you right for making me thirdwheel all the time. "I saw it when I slept over one time. Didn't you think it was odd that I had no reaction when you announced that you were gay?"

"I thought you didn't care, un!" Deidara protested loudly, bits of food projecting out from his mouth. Gosh, he was such a pig sometimes.

I laughed, covering my mouth to avoid Deidara's mishap. "I don't. I'm happy that you found someone you love. You've been much nicer to me ever since you've met him."

Deidara's cheeks turned red, similar to the dress shirt I was going to wear on Thursday to represent our company when MQ came to interview my boss. His mouth became a thin line, though his eyes were sparkling from some unknown reason. Deidara does not cry. He doesn't even know what tears-

Oh my god, he was crying! Tears ran down Deidara's face, and Deidara quickly wiped them away, refusing to believe that he was crying. I grabbed my tissue box from my bedside table, handing them to Deidara.

"Thanks, un." He mumbled through a snotty mess. "This doesn't leave the room, okay, un?" I nodded, smiling at him. "I really do love him."

"I know you do. I'm sure he feels the same way, even as quiet as he is."

"He's not as quiet as you think, un. He's actually quite loud, especially when we're having s-"

"AH, Deidara! I don't want to hear about your indecent acts!" I covered my ears, squeezing my eyes tight.

"It's not like you haven't had sex before, un." We both started at each other for a while, blinking at the same time. "Wait… Are you still a virgin, un?"

"Well, yeah. The only boyfriend I had was during my junior year of college. But we broke up because he was a prick and I had too much work to do." I ate my pizza, taking huge bites. "He tried pressuring me for drunk sex and asking for booty calls… So I just blocked his number and deleted him off my phone."

"You should get with Itachi, un. He has money and he's single… un." Seemed like being single wasn't as important as having money to Deidara.

"No way, I'm not falling in love with my Boss. That's suicide in itself."

* * *

><p>AN:

Woot-woot! Hope this chapter gave you more insight on her work and the relationships around her.

Happy reading (as always),  
>tofufuu<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

The office was bustling (not unusual) with cameramen, makeup artists and fashion coordinators (that's unusual). MQ, standing for Male Quarters, was here in the office to get Itachi ready. MQ was targeted towards men with their self-esteem going and to help other males achieve their goals through the inspirations of other successful males. But there was a large female fan base who liked to look through the magazines for hot men. Of course I wasn't one of them. Not at all.

"You!" I looked at the fashion coordinator, the leader of the project beside him. I pointed to myself. "Yes, you! Come here!" I hopped on over to the fashion coordinator, said coordinator fixing his black framed glasses. "This is a last minute proposal by the project leader," He motioned to the girl beside him. "But I was wondering if you would like to join in for a picture with Uchiha-san? We thought that having a female beside him would allow our viewers to be more motivated."

That if you have money and become successful, that you'd have a beautiful(?) assistant beside you? I'm down.

"Um, sure I don't mind, I guess. Does Uchiha-san know?"

The coordinator nodded, clearly excited. Eh, what have I got to lose?

"Alright, come with me to the fitting room. Let's get you out of your garb, hun, you look awful." Okay, wow, thanks. I thought Itachi would be the only one to make fun of what I wore, but I guess not. I wasn't even wearing anything ugly! I wore one of my nice dresses too!

I got spun around and redirected to a room that they were borrowing for set-up. The coordinator threw some clothes and shoes at me, shoving me into their makeshift change room. I held the dress up , unsure of how to wear it. "Um, excuse me, but how do I wear this?"

I heard the coordinator kiss his teeth, opening the curtain. "Ugh, do you know how to do anything that deals with clothing, hun? Strip; let's get this dress on you."

Never in my life have I felt so self-conscious about my own body. Previously, I was wearing a plain red dress, contrasting against my pale skin in a way that made me glow. But now, I was wearing a body-accentuating black and red, floor-length dress, hugging me in all the right curves, while still being appropriate for work. I put on the pumps they provided for me, nearly falling over. They took me to the makeup and hair table, tugging at my hair, and jerking my chin around to see my face to put makeup on me.

"Is she done?!" The coordinator shouted. "If she is, hurry her to Uchiha-san's office! We're running thirty seconds behind!" Wow, down to the second; this guy was insane.

"Done!" The makeup artist yelled, moving herself away from my face.

My jaw dropped. Holy shit, is that really me looking back at the mirror?

They had straightened my hair and it literally hung on my head like a thousand dangling pins. My face… Wow, I couldn't even describe at how they made my entire facial structure changed. My cheekbones sky-rocketed to the ceiling, my lips looked poutier and fuller, and my eye colour has never stood out so much in my entire adulthood.

"Chop, chop!"

I shook my head, snapping out of it, rushing to the coordinator. He shoved me towards Itachi's office. I opened the door slowly, peeking in. They were currently taking solo pictures of Itachi in his office. Gosh, he looked so fucking good. He wasn't in anything special, but in a designer tux, completed with a customized bowtie for his neck. The assistant photographer motioned me in, causing Itachi to look behind the photographer and right at me. I averted his gaze, feeling my cheeks heat up. Was it getting hot in here or was it just me?

"Komorebi-san?" Itachi called my name and I almost fainted there. Why did he have to sound like that?

"Good morning, Uchiha-san." I bowed, giving him a thumbs up. "You look great." He was beyond great, he was fucking gorgeous.

Itachi seemed like he was about to say something, but decided against it. He didn't have the time anyway, because the photographer had interrupted our small moment. "Alright! Can I get the both of you to pose around his desk?" We both nodded. Itachi sat in his chair, and I leaned against his desk, trying to relax my body. The flashes went and I think I went temporarily blind at how many varying exposures there were. There were long flashes, then short flashes and I suddenly had lost track at how many pictures were being taken.

At the end of it all, I could still see the flashes in my eyes. "Good job! The pictures were lovely!" The next part was when Itachi would be interviewed on his business. The questions were split between his lifestyle and his next steps with his company. There were even a few questions directed at me, but Itachi was smart and said pretty neutral answers. The surprise came when they asked me a question.

"And, Komorebi-san, how does it feel to work with one of the most powerful men in the world?"

I thought about it for a moment. "Honestly speaking, I've only worked with him for a week at this point. However, I really appreciate the knowledge he provides me when making critical decisions for the company. I've learned a lot during the time I've already worked here, and I look forward to growing with the company."

I breathed a sigh of relief when they redirected the questions back to Itachi, who seemed to be pleased at my answer.

The whole process of MQ coming over, setting up, shooting, interviewing, clean-up and then leaving took almost the entire day. They left about an hour before my shift ended. They stripped me from that beautiful dress (tears!) and shoes, but said I could keep the hair and make-up. Well no shit, I wasn't going to walk around bare-faced.

I went into Itachi's office, filing the papers atop of cabinet, getting straight back into some quick duties. "You can go home now, Komorebi-san."

I smiled. "It's okay. I still have an hour left before my shift ends anyway, might as well fit in some work." Itachi nodded, letting me do my duties. I filed everything quickly, heading to Itachi's phone to answer some voicemails and taking calls that were on hold.

"Hello, this is Uchiha-san's personal assistant speaking, may I take a direct message for you?"

"Hi, tell Itachi this is Pein, then pass him the phone."

"One moment, please." I covered the receiver. "Uchiha-san, there's a man called Pein on the phone. Can he speak to you?"

"Hn, sure." I handed him the phone, Itachi sandwiching the phone between his ear and shoulder, continuing with his own paperwork. "Hello, Pein."

There was some murmuring on the phone. "Yes, she has contacted me. Did her lawyer send in a statement?" I tried to tune out their conversation since it was obviously none of my business, but gossip was still gossip at the end of the day.

I motioned to the signed papers underneath Itachi's arms. He nodded, signaling it was okay for me to mail them out. "We can discuss about all details tomorrow." I took the papers, using a paperclip to keep them together. "I'll see you tomorrow. Goodbye, Pein." Itachi hung up the phone, placing it back on the receiver. I went through my notepad, checking off the things that have been completed today. I looked at my watch- still had some time left. I took all the empty coffee cups on Itachi's desk away, placing my notepad in between my arm and side.

"I'll be heading back to my office now. Let me know if you need anything, Uchiha-san."

"Hn." Itachi typed away at his laptop. "Komorebi-san?"

"Hm?" I cocked my head to the side, a coffee cup in each hand.

"You looked lovely today."

I think my face became so red that my ears even seared from his compliment. I bowed, at loss for words, leaving his office in silence.

* * *

><p>A month had already passed since I started working my personal-slave job. The workload was okay, I mean, it drove me to the edge most of the time since a lot of the public relations I faced were snobby and downright rude, and yet I still had to be the bigger person- apologize and still attend their needs with the utmost respect. Some things were amusing though; I'd get a girl who's dying for Itachi's attention calling the line, and shooting them down has never felt so good. I addressed Itachi about these girls and he said I could do whatever I want as long as they didn't call back again. I thought of the best excuses, like my favourite one saying Itachi would rather go to a gay bar and waste time to try and pick up a lesbian than talk on the phone with them. I had nothing against lesbians, but we all know that they wouldn't fall for a man like Itachi. He was one of their top 10 reasons to never date, or prefer not to date, men again.<p>

Itachi and I haven't gotten particularly close or anything, but there were a couple of times Sasuke and Sakura couldn't make it to lunch, so it was just me and Itachi discussing business. Through the times we ate alone, I learned many things about the older Uchiha; he didn't like steak, which is actually quite surprising. He could afford the best steak in the world, but would never eat it because he didn't like it. He preferred foods with a fresher and clearer-taste. Him and Sasuke were similar in that field. One of the reasons why he approved of my tea shop idea was because he himself visited different traditional Japanese cafes as a hobby. I probably won many brownie points over the month that that proposal.

We openly debated about his… choice of words when talking to me, so he had been less hostile towards me, his eyes losing their serrated edge to them. Don't get me wrong, he was still aloof to me, but hey, I didn't feel like a brick wall so that felt nice.

"Is that the magazine that comes out tomorrow, un?" I nodded, Deidara's question pulling me away from my thoughts.

I handed him the magazine. "My company got a box of these so we didn't have any surprises waking up tomorrow." I looked at the cover over his shoulder as he sat on the couch. On the cover were large black letters MQ outlined in white, Itachi sitting at his desk with his hands tucked underneath his chin. He was staring straight at the camera and it almost felt like he was staring at me.

Deidara flipped the page to where his 4-page spread was. The first two pages were of Itachi posing (sexily) towards the camera. Deidara turned the page, licking his finger in the process. The third page was a picture of Itachi and I. The fourth page was the interview.

**Interviewer:** Tell us a little bit about yourself.  
><strong>Uchiha-san:<strong> My name is Uchiha Itachi and I'm the CEO of Uchiha Investor Corp. I'm currently the youngest investor in the world, having turned 27 recently.

**Interviewer:** What makes you such a successful investor?  
><strong>Uchiha-san:<strong> My ability to make intelligent decisions to improve my company and the well-being of others.

**Interviewer:** Alright, enough about your business for a little bit. What is your favourite pastime?  
><strong>Uchiha-san:<strong> I usually like to stay on top of my work and business to ensure everything runs smoothly, however I do indulge myself in visiting unique Japanese cafes.

**Interviewer:** Do you have a favourite genre of music?  
><strong>Uchiha-san:<strong> I don't mind a lot of genres, as long as they don't make me deaf.

**Interviewer:** Do you believe in World Peace?  
><strong>Uchiha-san:<strong> It's something I look forward to in the far future. I wish it would come sooner.

**Interview:** What are your next steps?  
><strong>Uchiha-san:<strong> I'm hoping to expand more overseas, but I will need more manpower to help support my decisions.

**Bonus question with Uchiha-san's lovely assistant (refer to adjacent page):**  
><strong>Interviewer:<strong> Komorebi-san, how does it feel to work with one of the most powerful men in the world?  
><strong>Komorebi-san:<strong> Honestly speaking, I've only worked with him for a week at this point. However, I really appreciate the knowledge he provides me when making critical decisions for the company. I've learned a lot during the time I've already worked here, and I look forward to growing with the company.

Deidara nodded, as if approving this entire thing. "You actually look decent, un."

I rolled my eyes, throwing some popcorn at him. "Please. If I saved up the money, I would totally buy that exact dress. Who's the designer?"

Deidara's eyes skimmed through the magazine. "_Kakuzu_, un. You wore a gown that was worth about a hundred grand, un."

My eyes widened. "A hundred grand…?" I did some quick calculations in my head. "That would take me four years to save up! I don't even know how long I can work here…" I fell backwards on to the couch, my feet hanging up in the air. The sudden impact caused the popcorn in Deidara's lap to fly everywhere.

"You'll probably work there for a while, un. Seems like things have been going well for you, un."

I looked over at Deidara picking up the fallen pieces of popcorn from the couch. "What makes you think that?"

Deidara snorted, throwing what he just picked up at me. I stuck out my tongue, trying to dodge all the pieces. "If he didn't like you, he wouldn't keep you around for a month, un."

* * *

><p>On Friday morning, I had decided to head to the office early. I tried to generally look nice for Friday's since it was the last day of the week. I wore a white silky blouse and a navy-blue wool shirt. On top of the blouse, I threw on a nice cardigan. I usually wore my hair up, but today I decided to leave it down. I even threw on heels!<p>

I made my way to my own office first, dropping off my coat and purse. I went to my desk to organize some things, while waiting for my computer to boot up. I grabbed the folder with "Teahouse Presentations" written on it, and made my way to Itachi's office to brew up his coffee. I had ended up getting a coffee machine to put in his office so that when I wasn't there, he could make his own damn cup of joe.

I knocked on the door, not sure if he was there. After hearing no answer, I peeked my head in. The older Uchiha was on the phone, and I assumed it was with Pein because that was the only man he talked informally to, other than Kisame and his brother. He motioned for me to come into his office. I bowed, closing the door behind me as I made my way to the coffee machine.

"I know you got her statements. How did everything go with her lawyer?" Murmuring on the phone. Itachi sighed, "Of course she wouldn't agree to anything. She wants to take this to the court because she has a higher chance of winning being a single parent."

I almost spilled his coffee. Oh shit, they have a kid together? So is she not a lesbian? I'm so confused…

"Well, of course she had the higher chance of winning, her kid isn't even biologically related to me."

Oh my god, Itachi was fighting for a kid he wasn't even related to? He must feel deeply for his step-child then…

I finished the cup of coffee, setting it on his desk, making my way over to his cabinet to file the things on top of it. Itachi continued his conversation, "I don't trust her with child support. You already know what she did to this place. I'd rather fully care for the child myself; he doesn't deserve her as a mother." I filed everything accordingly, taking a seat in front of Itachi as soon as I was done. "I will talk to you later, Pein, my work is starting soon." He put the phone back on its receiver.

This was the first time I've ever seen him distressed. Itachi was rubbing his temples, his face scrunched up in discomfort. "I'm sorry, for everything that's been going on in your life, Uchiha-san." I told him quietly.

"It's quite alright, Komorebi-san. This is how it's been for three years."

I reached into the pocket of my cardigan, pulling out some candied ginger. I pushed it towards him. "The sisters at my orphanage used to give these to us when we were feeling queasy. Please, have one."

Itachi stared at the wrapped pieces of ginger. He took one and opened it, putting it in his mouth. "Did you make these? The packaging is awful."

"You can tell, huh." I laughed sheepishly, scratching the back of my head.

"So you really did make these?"

I nodded, keeping a smile on my face. "A sister taught me how before I left. I have a whole bag of them in my purse, if you would like more."

"Thank you." The faintest smile left his face. If Deidara was here, he'd comment on how it was art since it was fleeting. He got up, but I stopped him.

"Um, Uchiha-san, if it's alright with you, please let me do the presentation today." I fidgeted in my seat, moving my hands from my lap to under my legs. "I don't want you to be side-tracked during the entire time, and I think I'm ready to showcase myself as a proper member of this company."

Itachi looked at me, an unreadable expression on his face. "Did you decide to do this as you came in this morning?"

I shrugged. "I was going to do this sooner or later. But since you seemed stressed out about your personal business, I'm trying to take the initiative to do this for you." I smiled. "And this project was my proposal, so I might as well do the entire thing on my own."

Itachi blinked, nodding slowly. "Alright, if you wish. I will attend the meeting, but you're in charge of everything."

I nodded vigorously. "Please, leave it to me, Uchiha-san."

The meeting started at 10 sharp, everyone already settling into their seats when I had walked in to ensure a smooth presentation. I used to have stage fright, but I slowly got over it in college when I had to do presentation after presentation. Whatever I said about getting over it, scratch that, it was slowly coming back to me. All eyes were on me, including my Boss' and that was nerve-racking all over.

"Good morning, everyone. You may know me as Komorebi, Uchiha-san's assistant, and I'm here to deliver a formal proposal with investing in a company we have not yet touched upon yet." I had everyone's attention at this point.

"The Uchiha Investors Corporation has numerous investments in a wide variety of industries. Forty percent of our investments are in the technology industry, ranging from at-home use to lab use. Another forty percent of our investments belong to agriculture, where we help our city increase their farming potentials to ensure our exports are top quality, above the World Price. The other twenty percent is split among recreational services which include, but are not limited to, the fashion industry, a few large food franchise chains, recreational knickknacks, and et cetera.

"I would like to bring forth to the table a traditional teashop franchise called, Heiwa. Heiwa has a total of only about 100 stores across the country, most of their stores concentrating in a city about two hours away from here. They excel in traditional Japanese café foods and have great turnouts all over the country. Their problem is that they're not sure how long they can keep up with their business as the traditional scene is lacking compared to the modern café scene. I want to propose an investment for this franchise."

The room erupted in quiet chatter, everyone exchanging looks. Itachi, however, looked straight at me, nodding in approval.

"I've browsed through quite a lot of databases to collect data like these, but I would like to particularly point out that among the age groups that use some of our resources for recreational purposes, such as traditional inns, are the largest age group, making it about fifty-three percent or the total. Coincidentally, traditional tea shops are also used by this age group, and so, I'm confident that we will succeed with putting our investments into this franchise. I have asked that for a given amount of one million dollars, we will take thirty percent from revenues with an exponential increase as the revenues also rise."

Chatter ensued. One of the members, whom I recognized as Hidan from the Marketing wing, raised his hand. "How the fuck do you suppose we deal with a tea shop, huh?"

"Well, Hidan-san," I went to the next slide. "Since this will still be under an Uchiha name, I thought we could use Uchiha-san as a marketing factor since tea shops are a hobby of his." I smiled, everyone surprised that I had knew that fact and they had not. I looked over at Itachi and seemed to have an amused smile on his face.

"Are there any objections?" Itachi's voice wrapped around my ears pleasantly. No one had seem to object my proposal, well especially if the Uchiha was the one challenging others. "Then we shall commence with the paperwork. I want everyone to listen to what Komorebi-san has to say before we finalize everything. Meet back in a week." Everyone got up and went back to their respective offices, leaving Itachi and I there. I had been cleaning up the room, logging off the projector's system.

I grinned at Itachi. "How did that go?"

"It was an excellent presentation."

I beamed; Itachi's words meant a lot to me. "Is it alright if I treated you to lunch today? It seems like you need a break from the place we usually go to. I know you don't like steak too much…" I twirled a strand of hair in my fingers, hoping he would say yes.

"Sure." Well, that hope was short-lived. Why would I have thought he'd say no? "I'd like that very much, thank you."

We both exited the building, happily chatting about what was to come for the company with new investments. I took him to my favourite place, Deidara's café.

I opened the door, the bell ringing happily. "Deidara!" I exclaimed excitedly, motioning for Itachi to hurry along. "I'm treating my boss to lunch. Make something really good for us!"

Deidara eyed the tall, dark, and handsome man, mulling over what to cook for us. "You decide to treat your boss to lunch and yet you haven't treated met to that dinner yet, un."

I felt my face turn red. "I said I would later! I don't wanna hear it from you during the time I have lunch." I glared at him, sticking my tongue out." Itachi and I took a seat near the window, Itachi chuckling as soon as we sat down. "What's so funny?" I cocked my head to the side.

"I didn't think you had this side of you outside of my office."

"I don't have many sides because I like to stay true to my personality!" I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest.

"It's a good quality to have." Itachi leaned forward, resting his chin atop of his propped arm. "Just didn't think I'd see it."

I shrugged, Deidara bringing coffee for us. "Your food should come in about ten minutes, un."

I nodded, smiling back at the blonde. "Thanks Deidara, you're the best! I really do owe you my life sometimes."

Deidara scowled at me, his lips curling downwards. "I hate when you get sentimental with me, un."

I laughed, Deidara going back to the kitchen. "Are you two close?"

I nodded, looking over at Itachi. "Deidara was my only family from my childhood. We both met at the orphanage and just ended up growing together." I stirred my coffee around. "Too bad he ditches me all the time for his boyfriend." I sighed.

"Does Komorebi-san want a boyfriend?"

"Hm…" I tapped my knee, staring in my cup of coffee. "I can't say no nor yes." I shrugged. "I didn't have the best relationship during college, but it was alright. I guess if I were looking, I'd want someone who can just take the utmost care for me, since I've been along for so long." I took a sip from my cup. "I mean, I don't need them to cling to me, but knowing that there's someone I can fall back to is quite nice." I smiled to myself, not realizing I'd feel nostalgic afterwards.

"I was never really into my marriage." My ears perked up at the sound of gossip. I looked at Itachi, the man stirring his coffee carefully. "It was more of a political marriage. It was arranged for business reasons where we would both prosper. Unbeknownst to my family and I, they were already bankrupt and had been using me for my money."

"Sasuke-san said that you seemed to love her, even if you weren't into the marriage part."

"He's right. I did love Hachi a lot. She brought a lot of joy to my bland life, and deep down, I had wished I never knew her motives." Itachi took a sip from his cup, then leaning back into the chair. "But I guess both ways wouldn't have ended well. She took forty-percent of my shares, but if I hadn't caught her in time, she probably would have ran away with more."

I can't believe someone would use love for stealing.

"You think you can love again, Uchiha-san?"

Itachi looked away from my eyes, staring out the window. "I believe so."

* * *

><p>AN:

I'm hoping everything is still consistent! Let me know if something seems off and I'll fix it right away because sometimes I jumble events up as I fix things along the way.

tofufuu


	6. Chapter 6

I opened the door to Itachi's office, staring straight at a kid no older than 6 years old in his chair. I stepped back out, looking at the plaque on Itachi's door. Okay, I was in the right place, but where was my boss? I went back into his office, bee-lining to his coffee machine, not taking my eyes of the kid.

"Where is Itachi-niisan?"

I looked at my watch. "He won't be here till another 5 minutes." I finished making the coffee. "Are you hungry?" I set down the coffee on Itachi's desk, taking a seat in front of the kid. He had messy, dark-chestnut brown hair and big, round, brown eyes. He was wearing a button-up shirt underneath a knitted vest and black corduroy pants, looking quite the preppy boy.

"I did. My Mommy bought me something before dropping me off here." He was careful with his words, but enunciated each syllable as best as possible.

"Oh? How did you get inside here?"

"Kisame-niisan let me in. He said that there would be a lady to come in later to make Itachi-niisan's coffee." I smiled. "But he didn't warn me to tell me she would be ugly."

The smile was wiped clean off my face with his words. This little brat! "Say, what's your name?"

"My Mommy said never to tell a stranger my name. Especially if she was ugly."

Why you little-!

The door opened and we both looked behind, Itachi walking in. The kid jumped off the chair, rushing to hug Itachi's leg. "Itachi-nii!"

Itachi nearly tripped over the child, but smiled as soon as he saw him, putting his hand on the child's head. "Good morning, Jun. I didn't expect to see you here so early."

"Mommy said she had business to do elsewhere." Itachi picked up Jun in his arms, the kid immediately clinging onto Itachi's neck.

Itachi's smile was plastered onto his face, and the scene warmed up my heart, melting every bone in my body. To think I could see this side of Itachi would be any girl's dream; I was so glad to witness it firsthand. "Sorry, I forgot to let you know, Komorebi-san. Hachi will be leaving her child with me for a couple of days while she leaves the country for a little bit."

Itachi sat in his chair, Jun in his lap. "It's quite alright. I was a little confused when I saw him this morning."

"Itach-nii, why is this ugly lady still in your room?"

I wanted to strangle the kid.

Itachi chuckled. "Jun, keep your manners while you're here. This ugly lady helps me out." Itachi threw a playful smirk at me, my heart picking up in speed.

"How come you didn't choose a prettier one?"

"Hey, I'm not that ugly, okay?" I frowned, not one to take ridicule any longer. I stood up from my chair, making my way to his cabinet to file the things on top of it. I know it was immature for me to be mad at a child, but it still did blows to my self-esteem. I finished filing the small stack, nearly slamming the cabinet shut. "I'll be in my office if you need me." I said to Itachi, my eyes skimming across his desk, noting that the ashtray wasn't there anymore, but I didn't bother to look at him.

I piled work onto myself, trying to drown out stupid thoughts. It really was stupid- being mad at my boss and his step-son because they were playfully calling me ugly (well, at least Itachi was, I hope?). A headache had started to form, my throat becoming scratchy. I looked up from my work briefly, staring at the photo of me in the Kakuzu dress. I kept it there for memories, and as a goal to motivate myself towards that dress. I had a sticky note on it, counting down the years and months I'd have till I achieved the dress. This was the only sane part of me on the desk at the moment.

I looked through the folder with the tea shop franchise- everything had been going smoothly. I wanted to visit the head store in our city, but I was still planning out the schedules so I wouldn't be away from work too long. I had planned to go on my own time… But right now sounded kind of nice.

I shook my head, eyeing my work again. I kept messing up my hair the entire time I was doing paperwork, looking absolutely disheveled. I heard the door to my room open, then close. I looked up briefly, looking at Itachi walking towards my desk.

"Komorebi-san? I blinked, looking back to my work as I continued. "Lunch is in five minutes. Are you coming?"

"No." It was weird in itself that Itachi was personally coming in to remind me about lunch. But it was just as weird as me flat out declining. "I have too much work to do."

"Would you like me to bring something back for you?"

"No."

"…Alright."

I had worked my butt off for the next two hours, trying to tire my brain out, trying to block out unnecessary thoughts. I didn't notice the time until Itachi poked his head in again, but I hadn't known till he set a Styrofoam box on my desk. I looked up, Itachi's face pretty emotionless, but his eyes looked weary, as if he wasn't sure of what he was doing. "I know you didn't eat yet, Komorebi-san."

I didn't say anything, putting my pen down. "I wanted to go home early."

"Did I do something wrong?" Itachi ran a hand through his hair, furrowing his eyebrows.

I ignored him. "I was planning to visit the teashop and then head straight home." I straightened the papers on my desk, shoving them into a different folder.

"Let me accompany you."

"No."

"Komorebi-san, I-"

"Look, Uchiha, you have a kid to supervise, don't you? I'm doubling my workload so you don't have to worry about doing work while he's here. I know you won't be able to get anything done." His eyes surveyed my desk, noticing how much fuller it looked with work. "I'm not very good with kids, especially growing up in an environment where there was competition to be adopted first. So please, do your job, and I'll do mine." I rolled my chair away from him to my cabinet, organizing some things.

I heard him get up from the chair. "If that is what you wish. You are free to leave early when you are satisfied with what you did." He closed my office door gently behind him.

I sighed. What was wrong with me? Why am I feeling this way?

* * *

><p>It had taken me a couple more hours to finish what was left. By then, I felt myself get lightheaded, my vision becoming a little bit blurry. My lips were a little dry, but nothing a little lip balm couldn't do. I put on my jacket and scarf, shoving some work into my bag. Locking my office door behind me, I looked over to Itachi's door, hearing giggles and soft chuckles from his room. I sighed, walking towards the reception desk.<p>

"Whoa, Missy!" I bumped into Kisame by accident, almost rebounding off him. I swayed a little on the spot, Kisame putting a hand to my forehead. "Are you heading home now?" I nodded, not having the energy to talk. "You're starting to get a fever. Get some rest, I'll let Itachi know."

I shook my head violently, putting a hand on Kisame's arm. "Don't let him know, alright? I'll deal with it on my own." I didn't allow him to say more, leaving a confused Kisame behind.

The air was starting to get chilly as the seasons hit almost mid-October. I wrapped my coat tighter around me, trying to salvage some heat left in my body. I barely made it to my home, lightheaded as hell and so cold, that I lost feeling in the tips of my toes. I dropped my bag at the door, and stripped my clothes away, throwing on a sweater and PJ pants. I curled up and bed, drifting off to sleep.

I groggily woke up to the sound of my doorbell ringing.

What time was it?

I looked over to my bedside table, neon-green numbers blinking loudly at me. I squinted; it was 18:23. I rolled out of bed, padding softly to the front door. Deidara wasn't supposed to be here till around 7… I opened the door, rubbing my eyes. "Deidara, why are you here so early?"

"Komorebi-san."

I blinked a couple of times, staring up at a slightly amused Uchiha. "Good evening, Uchiha-san…"

"May I come in?"

I moved the door wider for him to enter my home. "I didn't expect you to come over. Sorry, I'm kind of a messy person." I scratched the back of my head, closing and locking the door behind him, feeling my face heat up. Oh god, he probably thinks I'm a pig!

"I like your home." Itachi took off his shoes, walking into the living room.

Wait, what?

I cocked my head to the side. "Huh?"

Itachi chuckled softly, similar to how he would laugh with Jun. "May I take a seat on your couch?"

"Oh, please. Sorry, it's really rare for me to have a guest, let alone my boss. Help yourself to anything." Itachi took a seat on the couch. "What would you like to drink?"

"Tea is fine."

I walked to the kitchen, completely nervous how I was home alone with my (beautiful) Boss. Girls would be dying for this moment; me on the other hand… I was literally dying. I started up the kettle, leaning against the kitchen counter, playing with a strand of my hair.

"Do you mind if I look around?" Heh, Itachi was being fidgety too.

"Not at all."

I heard him get up from the couch, walking around my living room. "You had a cat?"

"I gave my cat to Deidara, and he ended up giving him to Sasori. That bastard." I mumbled the last part, not willing to feel bitter since I was the one who gave him up first. The kettle turned off, and I poured the newly boiled water into two mugs each with a teabag in it. I walked out with a mug in each hand, setting it on the coffee table.

Itachi was looking at my wall of achievements, all sorts of certificates and bachelors hung up on it. "You used to dance?"

I shrugged. "It was during my rebellious high school days. I don't think I could dance now without breaking my hip." I blew on my mug, trying to cool down the hot liquid.

Itachi took a seat on the couch again, taking a folded piece of paper out from his pocket. "Jun drew this for you."

He slid the sheet of paper with crayon markings all over it. It was a picture of, presumably me, in the red dress from the magazine. He wrote on it, 'To: Komo-neechan, You're not that ugly, From: Jun', with some spelling errors here and there. I laughed, smiling at the picture and his informal apology. "You came all the way to give me this picture?"

"Well, Kisame came by my office and told me you left early. He said that you were also burning up, so I left Jun in his care so I could come by to see how you were doing."

I admired the handiwork of the childish picture some more. "Damn that Kisame. I told him not to tell you. I'm fine, if anything."

"Why?"

"Didn't think it'd be that big of a deal." I shrugged, placing the picture back on the table. "I haven't been feeling well at all today, but work still came in front for me."

"I'm sorry about bringing in Jun without telling you. It was selfish of me without warning you, and you ended up trying to compensate for me."

I looked at Itachi, the dizziness still haven't gone away from my mind yet. "Is it silly if I told you that I got mad at a child for insulting my looks?"

Itachi smiled a little, shaking his head. "I can't believe my employee felt insulted by a child."

"I didn't think you'd be good with kids, let alone have a soft spot for a particular one." I took a jab at him back.

"I was the one who took care of Sasuke when we were younger, and our parents were too busy to fully take care of us, you know."

I laughed, feeling light, as if I was floating away from my own body. It felt nice to finally have a normal conversation with Itachi, nothing to do with work but only about nonsense things. It was touching to know he came to check on me, and even directed his step-son to draw a picture of me in an attempt for an apology.

"You sounded like me just now," I leaned back into the armchair, curling into it. "Having parents, but they didn't have the ability to take care of us. You had Sasuke growing up, and I had Deidara. But now both of them seem to be much more independent than the both of us."

"Sounds about right." Itachi smiled.

I took a sip from my mug. "Do you ever think about what you want from life?"

Itachi tapped his fingers on the sofa arm, seeming to be in thought. "I had always thought being successful would bring me happiness. But I knew that was just a cover up for myself because I honestly hadn't a clue about what I wanted at all." His eyes lost focus in his mug. "But when I had met Hachi and Jun, I had learned that if I had somebody with me throughout my life to share experiences with, I would be satisfied with my own life."

"Hm… I wish I could find something like yours." Itachi raised an eyebrow at me, breaking from his trance. "I haven't had a clue about happiness because I haven't experienced it yet. I mean, I've only been content with my life, and maybe have temporary happiness…" I looked up to the ceiling, spacing out. "But I wonder what it'd be to feel pure happiness. Would it hit me like a bus, or would it be a fleeting moment; gone as soon as it had come?"

Itachi and I had ended up talking to each other for another hour before he realized he let poor Kisame loose with the mini-Satan. "Hm, it's almost 8. I should probably get going Komorebi-san."

"You can call me Komo, if you want. It's what most people refer to me as."

I smiled at him, Itachi seeming to haul it over in his mind. "Alright, Komo-san. The same goes for me then." We both got up from our (comfy) spots from the couch, me walking him over to the door. "I hope you feel better by tonight. I wouldn't want to be in the offices alone tomorrow."

I chuckled, opening the door for him. "I'll try, Itachi-san. I wouldn't want to leave my Boss behind when the office goes into chaos."

* * *

><p>I came in the next morning, peeking my head into Itachi's office. Itachi gave me a small smile upon seeing my face. "Goood morning, Komo-san. Could you watch Jun for a moment? I have to make some quick preparations."<p>

I nodded, Itachi dragging Jun along with him. Itachi left the room, leaving Jun and I to stare down at each other. "Good morning, Jun-kun."

"G'morning, Komorebi-neesan." Jun had the poutiest expression today, though I would be pouting too, knowing I'd have to leave tonight.

"Come to my office, I have to put some things away." We both headed over, Jun taking a seat in my office chair. I let the little squirt do what he want since he was only a kid at the end of the day. I was filing some things away, feeling much better (and more relieved) than yesterday.

"Nee-san, why did you put my picture here?" I looked at my desk, and surely enough, he was referring to the framed drawn-picture by him.

"Why not? It's a good picture." I shrugged, turning back to my cabinet. "I want everyone to see Jun-kun's work, anyway. Jun-kun is a good artist." I caught a glimpse of a blushing Jun, smiling to myself.

"Nee-san, are you trying to get on my good side?"

I laughed, ruffling the kid's hair as I moved to the other side of my desk. "Is it working, Jun-kun?"

Jun puffed his cheeks out, refusing my antics. "Mommy and Itachi-niisan will still be the top of my list!"

I smiled, knowing there was no way I could meddle with his list. "I'm sure they are, and I'm sure they wouldn't want it any other way." I took a seat in front of the child. "Jun-san, please tell me what I should do now."

Jun lightened up, seeing as I was willing to play along with him. "Fetch me my backpack! I will draw up some papers for you to fill out!"

I nodded. "Yes, Jun-san!" I bowed my head, making my way to Itachi's office.

I walked in, forgetting to knock again, coming face-to-face with Itachi and Hachi (sounded like something from Dr. Seuss). "I apologize…" I mumbled, bowing real quick.

Hachi, a woman not much older than Itachi, stood in front of his desk, her neck red with anger. She had long black hair, straight like needles and bright gray eyes. She was in such good shape- she was wearing a cream-coloured dress, with nylons, and kitten heels. She wore a black and red, cape-jacket, and a beret sitting perfectly at an angle atop of her head. Seeing her in person made me realize that there was no doubt that Itachi had fallen in love with her. She looked flawless!

"Where's Jun?"

"You said you'd come pick him up tomorrow."

"I decided to come back early." Hachi crossed her arms over her chest.

Itachi sighed. "Let me take him out one last time today. Come back at night, Hachi."

Hachi snorted, tapping her foot impatiently on the ground. "Fine. Be lucky that Jun still likes you after what you've done. I'll be back at 6 sharp, no more excuses." Hachi turned to the door, eyeing me up and down. "Didn't think your tastes would degrade." She left, slamming the door behind her.

I winced as Itachi slumped into his chair. I gave him a wry smile, "I take it that your wife is not pleased?"

"Ex. Ex-wife." Itachi corrected me, returning the smile. So they're divorced now? "What brings you here?"

"Oh! I came for Jun's backpack! I'm playing office with him."

Itachi rose an eyebrow before cracking a smile. "I thought you said you weren't good with kids."

I pouted, Itachi handing me Jun's backpack. "I'm not! But I thought I'd give it a shot anyway. Taming one kid is better than never taming one at all." I took the bag from his hand, our fingers briefly brushing. Whoa, whoa, Komo, what do you think this is? A TV drama? I still got stupid shivers from it!

"Let's go out for lunch together."

I nodded, giving him a cheeky smile.

Most of my morning was spent slaving away to Jun. He was such a demanding child! But nonetheless, a cutie, and I'm sure he'll be popular with the ladies when he grew up. I could also see him working for the Uchiha company, but I guess that'll depends on who he ends up growing with. I knew that Itachi and Hachi were divorced, but I knew deep down that Itachi was fighting for Jun's custody, even if they weren't related. He still hadn't gotten any notices from Pein, so I'm not sure how he's approaching it, but I believe in Itachi and him winning. Hachi was nothing but beautiful, and that won't get her anywhere.

If only there was evidence that Jun would be better off with Itachi…

"Komo-san! Please help me tie my shoe!" Itachi had poked in his head at that point, stifling in a laugh as I bent down to tie his shoe.

I winked at Itachi before tying the child's shoe. "Of course, Boss!"

Jun spotted Itachi and as soon as I was done tying his laces, he dashed for Itachi, showing him the pictures he drew today. "Itachi-niisan, look what I drew!" Itachi crouched down to his level, making me swoon as I saw how much he cared for his (ex)step-son. "This is you ordering Kisame-niisan around. And then, this is me telling Komo-neesan what to do!" Itachi chuckled at that picture. "This last picture is of you, and Mommy."

I stared at Itachi, looking for how he would approach the delicate situation of a child's mind. "Remember what we talked about, Jun?"

Jun jutted out his bottom lip, nodding slowly. "…You and Mommy don't love each other anymore."

Itachi took Jun's small hands into his own. "That's right. I know it's hard for Jun to still accept it, and I'm sorry it's hard for you to do it, but I still love Jun very much, not matter what."

Jun smiled, hugging Itachi's neck tightly. I smiled, seeing Itachi's soft side. His frown lines didn't seem so deep, and his body language wasn't so uptight. I had almost wished I could bring out this side of him more, but he was still my boss at the end of the day. So, almost.

"Alright, let's go to lunch, kiddo's." Itachi threw a smirk at me, and I couldn't help but let my heart skip a few more beats.

Itachi had suggested that he take us on a surprise, so I let him do so, since today was the last time he could see Jun until god knows how long. We walked for about ten minutes, and I had finally realized where we were going.

We were headed to the tea shop we invested in!

"Welcome, Uchiha-sama!" The waiters all bowed, the girls swooning over the bachelor. "For three? Please follow me this way." We were led to a booth seat, Itachi taking a seat next to Jun.

"Jun, what do you want to eat?"

Jun looked through the menu, furrowing his brows. "Itachi-niisan, how do you read this?"

Itachi leaned over Jun, reading the page of his menu. "Bentou. Is that what you want?" Jun nodded, almost drooling. Itachi laughed, ruffling his hair. "What about you, Komo-san?"

I blushed, scratching the corner of my mouth. "I actually already looked through the menu way early into the proposal…"

Itachi blinked a couple of times before breaking into a laugh. "I didn't know my assistant was such a glutton."

I puffed out my cheeks. "Hey! I enjoy eating good food! I proposed this restaurant so I could eat here for a discounted price!" I widened my eyes, blowing my entire cover.

Itachi's face went stern. "So, the entire proposal for this franchise was so you could eat here at a discounted price." It wasn't even a question anymore, he was stating it.

The air got really thick between us, tensions rising. Jun was staring at us back and forth, like a silent thunderbolt coming from Itachi's eye's going into mine. "I-uh…"

Itachi broke into a (silent) laughter, holding his stomach. "Komo-san!" Jun giggled at Itachi losing control of his laughter. "You should've seen the look on your face." Itachi said after a few minutes to calm himself down. "That's a neat motivation for you to start the proposal."

I stuck my tongue out at him. "It's a restaurant I enjoyed going to. I noticed that the customers weren't coming as frequently, but when I saw its application in the pile, I quickly addressed it so I could save the franchise. The owners of this particular restaurant fostered me when I was stressed a couple of years ago."

"Hm. That's nice of you. You saved an entire franchise in the process of saving this one store."

I smiled, resting my chin atop of my propped-up arm. "It's the small things that count in life."

"Komo-chan!" I looked to my left, looking at the owner of the restaurant. I got up and immediately hugged the plump woman. "I haven't seen you in so long!"

I smiled, my mouth almost cramping at how ecstatic I was to see the owner. "Yes, it's been too long. I've been busy with life and work that I've neglected in you and your husband."

The owner glanced at Itachi and Jun. "Oh my, you surely have grown! Already married and have a kawaii kid to boot!"

I blushed, waving my hands in the air. "Oh, no, no. This is my boss and his kid, please don't mistake it as-"

"And what's your name, handsome young fellow? I didn't think Komo-chan would date again after her nasty break up with the bastard she was with!"

I put a hand to my face, hiding behind it as I felt my cheeks heat up even more. "Uchiha Itachi."

"Oh, my! Komo! You scored yourself with such a powerful man! Good job!"

Is this what it felt like to be embarrassed by a Mom? I'm almost glad I didn't have a motherly figure to take care of me.

"I'll treat you guys to lunch today in celebration of Komo moving on from that bastard! Order whatever ya like!" The owner stumbled away, calling out her husband to tell him the (fake) news.

I sat back down, flustered as ever. I snuck a peek at Itachi, quickly averting my eyes as we made eye contact. He had the most amused look on his face, his eyebrow cocked up, the corners of his lips upturned. I covered my face, trying to calm myself down. "I'm sorry. I'm so embarrassed…"

Itachi, not missing a beat, replied with, "Would you still be embarrassed if we were dating?"

* * *

><p>AN:

I'm so sorry guys! So here's the reason why this update was so far apart from the others:

On Sunday, I had travelled back to another city where I go to University. I coincidentally also got new roommates the day before and one of them volunteered to have their internet replace our previous one because it was too unreliable, so obviously we all agreed. For some reason, we're not receiving internet, even though our modem is 100% fine and we have a DSL connection. I have no idea what the issue is, but the damn roommate hasn't complained to his provider, and I'm really tempted to take the phone from him and give them a piece of my mind.

**TL;DR: I haven't had internet since Sunday, and I'm currently updating from school.**

I'll fit in an update again tomorrow since I have class again. Don't be mad at me? I have up till Chapter 10 written up!

Replies:  
><strong>KKR:<strong> Thanks for your reviews! I don't have a problem just inputting your review into Google Translate, haha! I'm very pleased to read your comments, they are very encouraging and nice! I can give a character description next chapter if you like?


	7. Chapter 7

After the fiasco at the tea shop, I had been trying so hard to calm my own nerves. I really couldn't fall for my boss, even if that's the last thing I did on this Earth before I left. I promised myself I wouldn't, especially since we were supposed to have a strictly business affair. But all that ended when he had shown up at my house, concerned for me. I'm sure he meant it in a colleague-way, but of course my mind had to twist it something else, gossiping with my heart.

I just couldn't stop thinking about him.

I mean, it's not like he even done anything to be remotely moved!

All he did was praise me for my hard-work, came to see me when I wasn't okay, and had flirted with me a couple of times, when times were rough! No way feelings could have developed from those small instances!

…Oh, who the fuck was I kidding?

I'm falling for my Boss.

I shook my head, sighing. I looked at the picture of us together, the one with me in the red dress. I frowned, knowing that I probably wouldn't work for his company long enough to obtain this stupid red dress. If Deidara had taught me anything, it was that whatever I did, there would always be someone dissatisfied with it, whether it be me or someone external.

Itachi, on the other hand, seemed to be taking this too well. He was pretty much still the same, acted amused with all the things I did, and still made playful jabs, but business was still business with the both of us. After the departure of Jun to Hachi, Itachi had went back to normal, but that was expected.

In fact, all things seemed to have stayed the same. The only who changed was me- Well, at least my outlook on some things.

I kept catching Sasuke making out with Sakura in various places exempt the photocopier room (thank god, I almost lived in that room for a month with all the proposals coming back). I would catch them in the supply closet, the meeting room, or even sometimes in Sakura's office. Hey, at least it seemed a bit more private, on terms of location. It's the thought that counts.

Kisame was still his ol' sharky self. Opal manned the reception desk like no other, and Pein. Well, he was Pein, keeping Itachi up-to-date with all the latest documents regarding his divorce and custody issues. I, on the other hand, happened to be falling for my Boss and wishing I wasn't a contract employee so I could be by him forever.

Really, the life and times of Komorebi.

The end of the day came by slower than usual, but when the big hand hit the 12, I almost jumped for joy. I could go home, change, and then go on to movie night with Deidara, forgetting about work and all its glory!

"Deidara!" I sobbed dramatically, hugging the blonde.

He immediately started struggling against me, prying my arms away, though they'd come back to his waist right away. "Get away from me, un!"

"Deidara, help me!" I rubbed my face on to his shoulder, Deidara smacking me upside the head. I winced, holding my head, letting go of the blonde.

"What's wrong with you, un?"

I took a seat on his couch, Deidara already starting on the coffee for me. "I think I like Itachi."

Deidara snorted, "I could've told you that." He slid my coffee to me, plopping into a seat next to me. "Why did you come all the way here to tell me something I knew, un?"

I took a miniscule sip from the cup. Ouch, that's hot. "Well, I thought maybe you could give me insight on how to not like him so much." I grinned, looking like a Cheshire cat.

"You can't fight the urge, un. If you like him a little, the feelings will grow even further." Deidara flicked my forehead with his fingers. "Just allow yourself to like him, he's not a bad choice, un."

I hissed, glaring at him. God, he was such a sadist! "But he's my Boss, Deidara! That's unacceptable." I frowned, knowing this conversation wasn't going to go anywhere.

"Does he like you back, un?"

I paused all my thinking, absorbing his question. Did he? I don't really notice anything he does in particular, except for when he flirts with me. "I'm not sure, to be honest. I know for a fact he doesn't dislike me because we eat lunch together every day, with no issues. Most of our rough patches had died down, and I," I smiled. "I actually almost feel like a friend to him."

Deidara pursed his lips. "Are you satisfied with being his friend, un?"

Well, of course! How cool is it to be friends with a powerful dude who owned like a third of the country? Plus, he was so intelligent, and seemed to make really good decisions with business. It'd be so nice to stay friends with him, even after I leave his company.

"Yeah, he's a great friend."

"So, the real question here is, will you be satisfied with _only_ being his friend?"

* * *

><p>I fidgeted in my seat, watching the two ex-lovers bicker. I've never seen Itachi so determined, and almost angry at someone before. Don't get me wrong, he had little tolerance for mistakes at the office, especially if he instilled what he wanted over and over again, but he dealt with those quickly so it wasn't like he had the time to get angry at something.<p>

But they had been talking for half an hour already, and I could see Itachi losing his patience with Hachi.

They were here to try and settle an agreement for Jun's custody and child-support. I could see why it's appropriate for her to argue for it, but she fucking took so much with her, and yet she still wants to milk more of his money? I know her family went bankrupt and all, but still… Itachi has nothing left of their relationship, not even the ability to see Jun, and that's all he wanted.

"I'm not giving that much child-support, Hachi." I envied her because he didn't use honorifics with her, but that didn't matter right now. "I'm not saying I won't give it to you, but you must understand, it's too high to be called child-support."

"You have so much money, anyway, why does it matter? You're a workaholic at the end of the day, aren't you? You'll make back the money just by lifting your pinky finger." She snorted, crossing her arms over her chest, looking away from him. Gosh, she seemed really bitter about something.

Itachi sighed, almost feeling defeated. "I know you're upset because I had neglected our marriage. I'm sorry." Well, shit. "And though I've realized my mistake too late, you have also done nothing but cause me trouble. You took forty-percent of my shares, Hachi. You think I could trust you with money now?"

Hachi was silent. Dang, I'd be too.

I'm so glad my office was sound-proof now. I let Jun toy around in my office, giving him a stack of misprinted papers he could doodle on, along with some snacks, so he could kill time in the office by himself. I would not let him see his two most beloved people arguing.

Suddenly, Hachi broke out into a low laugh, her voice reminding me of a villain right now. "Fine. You can keep your damn money. Hyuga-san gives me a fatter salary than you do with this one." She eyed me like I was a piece of trash. I felt shivers all over me, feeling pretty trashy. Wait, did she say Hyuga? "Bring me Jun."

I got up and headed over to my office, peeking in. "Jun-kun?" I walked over, the kid pretty much asleep, his head on my desk. He was holding a marker in his hand, in the middle of a drawing. He rolled up his sleeves to avoid the colour getting on to his clothing.

And that's when I noticed something wrong.

I peered over him, studying his forearms. There were fresh bruises, old bruises and a cut on his arm. I covered my mouth. He was getting abused at home…!

Jun stirred in his sleep, dropping the marker to rub his eyes. "Mommy?"

"It's Komo." I smiled, kneeling down to his height. "It's time to go now." I brushed some hair away from his face. I helped him packed his bag, looking at all the pictures he drew. He even drew a picture of me! He was still a little sleepy, so I carried him myself to Itachi's room, his arm loosely wrapped around my neck.

I set him down on the floor, helping him put on his bag. Hachi walked over, glared at me, and took Jun's wrist in her hand. "Let's go, Jun."

Jun visibly winced. "Ow, Mommy, that hurts!" I almost reached back for him, but she had already left, slamming the door behind her.

I slowly made my way in front of Itachi's desk, plopping down into a chair, feeling tears well up in my eyes. "Komo-san…?"

The tears spilled, dropping off my face like water bombs. I couldn't stop them and they came like a steady stream. "I-Itachi-san…" I sniffled, Itachi pushing the tissue box towards me. "Jun is… g-getting h-hit…"

"What do you mean?" I heard Itachi's voice harden.

I looked up at him, staring into his eyes, my vision being blurred. "I s-saw his arms…" I took a tissue to dab some tears away, trying to calm myself down. "H-He h-has bruises all o-over them, fresh a-and old…"

Itachi got up from his chair, making his way to the window, looking out. After a few silent moments, he said, "Go home and get some rest, Komo-san. I need some time along for today. You're dismissed."

I nodded slowly, and I could only imagine the bare minimum Itachi was going through with his mind.

* * *

><p>AN:

Hello everyone! I apologize for the short chapter, but adding this was crucial to drive the plot forward. Also, I have good news; my internet is fixed so this will be updated on a regular basis now! Expect a new chapter every couple of days or so. I'm also very happy to see that I've been gaining many new readers and that it seems to be positive feedback (I hope) for me. Since this chapter is so short, I will include a small passage at the bottom of this Author's Note regarding the main character which was requested by KKR (thank you for your interest!). Also, sorry this took so long to update, I really hate this website Doc's Manager. You have to save the shit out of the documents or else it's all gone. I do all my chapters externally so that's not the problem, but when I do Author Note's and blurbs, I do them all on here. The website even logged out on me once while I was doing this -_- .

Replies (I realized that I could reply directly on the comments page, but I feel this is more personalized to include it in the chapter):

**Mintakaa:** I was scared that my chapters were too boring or that I was trying too hard! When I first developed this story, I wasn't sure where to take it, but the things have fallen into place. Hopefully, the events that happen continue to excite you.

**annzzzy: **Thank you for your kind words!

* * *

><p>When I was plotting out the main character for this story, I had a totally different look in mind. I wanted her to have long, wavy lavender-coloured hair with bright cherry-red eyes, something really eccentric and fantastical. But I realized that it wouldn't be too hot for a story set in the modern world with big corporations and mediocre lives. So, I decided to go with a more typical look to make her seem more "relatable" and fit in the setting more.<p>

Komorebi was described in Chapter 3 to have mid-length, wavy brown hair and hazel-coloured eyes. Everything else about her I made ambiguous so you can kind of think of how she looks on your own. In my eyes, I see a 5'5 and a half girl with a lanky body and relatively small-chest, kind of like Tsunemori Akane's body from Psycho Pass season 1. She has pale skin, almond eyes, a prominent nose and thin lips, a beauty mark below her left eye.

As for her personality (psychological and/or sociological), she's very blunt and stubborn. She prefers to say things straight-up, no sugar-coating or corner-cutting, which usually leads people to believe that she's bitchy or rude. Her stubbornness causes her to be the type of person to carry the blame on her back, to avoid having someone else to fall because she didn't monitor them properly with their tasks. Komorebi is also independent, but readily leans on Deidara for her deepest ruts. She works hard, not only for others to appreciate her work, but for her to stay in-tune with what she is capable of. At the end of the day, however, she is still a girl and will let the emotions from her heart take over.

Komorebi was a name I thought for her while I take the train to school. I know that in the Japanese language, they have a word for the phrase, "the light that is filtered by the leaves of a tree". If any of you were wondering, she has a last name.

_Edit (08/11/14):_ Forgot to mention, she also has a tattoo on her right shoulder blade of a gold Koi fish. She's also 23 and is 4 years apart from Itachi in this story.


	8. Chapter 8

Itachi had grown restless.

He couldn't do anything to save his step-son because he had no solid proof of Jun's problem at home. The jury could rule out abuse in a split second without said proof. I had never felt so helpless in my life, and although I wasn't close with Jun, it was really hard to see child abuse. I grew up with some kids who went through it, and they didn't grow up healthily.

Time passed however, and Itachi had eased a little. Christmas was coming up soon so Jun would be able to stay with him while Hachi was gone for vacation, so he was waiting for that moment to maybe collect some evidence. I was relieved, but something told me it wouldn't last long.

I'll help Itachi when I see an opportunity made just for me.

* * *

><p>I gathered my papers, bouncing over to Itachi's office. I knocked on his door, hearing a murmured 'come in' on the other side. I opened the door and skipped over to his cabinet. I shoved some papers alphabetically inside. "Komo-san?" Itachi sound amused with me.<p>

"Hm?" I was almost getting over my crush until I made eye contact with him, my entire body feeling warm and fuzzy all over.

"Kisame's having his annual Christmas party this year, though it's hardly ever on Christmas." I cocked my head to the side, Itachi stacking some papers away. "I'm wondering if you'd like to go with me as my date."

"D-date?! Oh, haha, Itachi-san, stop that! You know how we're business partners at the end, anyway!" I laughed nervously, giving the Uchiha a few smacks to the shoulder, trying to enforce my joking tone. "But if you must, I'll accompany you to the party so you're not so lonely!"

Itachi rose an eyebrow at me, the same stupid, amused (sexy) smirk on his face. "Do you have anything to wear?"

My mouth formed an 'o' shape. "Thinking about it now, I really don't. I was thinking of going shopping with Deidara."

"Let's go together. I can come by your place this weekend, eat lunch together, and then go look for a dress."

"Um, you don't really have to, haha, I can just go with De-"

Itachi looked at me, resting his cheek against his fist, arm propped up against his desk ledge. "It's fine. I suggested it, so I might as well help you go through with it." Go through with it?! I'm not going to rehab, you dunce!

"I-uh…"

"I'll come by your place around eleven."

* * *

><p>I tried to look nice, not that I was going on a date or anything! I'm just going out to shopping with my Boss, no big deal! Fuck, I feel my insides frying itself up. I'm so embarrassed at how flustered I was getting from one guy! Even with my ex, I didn't feel like this.<p>

Itachi had come by, clad in a long scarf and long, black wool trench coat. He smiled at me, waving. "Good morning, Komo-san."

I waved back, giving him a small smile back. "Good morning, Itachi-san. Did you sleep well?"

"Better than most nights." He chuckled. "It was the first night Pein hasn't drunk-called me about my case." Though I knew better that it would still be about Jun at the end of his night.

"Ah, I didn't know you and Pein were that close."

"We went to college together. It was a brutal four years, but he held me up, and vice versa."

I chuckled, following Itachi's footsteps. "I didn't think such a successful man needed holding."

Itachi poked my forehead, my hands flying up to massage the area. "Of course I needed someone to hold me up. I didn't become successful on my own."

I pouted, but nodded anyway. "That's true. But, it's okay now, you have an awesome team to help you through with your company." I smiled enthusiastically. I hope there was nothing in my teeth.

Itachi led me to a casual-looking restaurant, doing those gentlemanly things that I oh-so loved. He held the door open for me, and also pulled (and tucked!) the chair when he seated me. They were serving set course meals, so Itachi had ended up surprising me. "Itachi-san, you should've let me chosen my lunch! I'm a picky-eater."

"I thought I'd surprise you." Itachi chuckled. "I don't often get the chance to treat others ever since the office changed its positions around."

"Don't you treat Kisame-san, or… Pein-san?"

Itachi shrugged, digging into his food. "They're not the same. When I treat you, it feels different somehow."

I smiled, letting the blush fill my cheeks. I've become the giddy school girl I never got to be. We ate our lunch in peace, having small talk with the occasional playful joke from Itachi. It was a pleasant experience, and I had almost forgotten about the crush on my Boss. Almost.

After lunch, we walked along the street, many big brand named stores popping up. We were officially in the luxury district, where all the raging fashion trends are showcased and everyone looked like they came straight out of a magazine. I couldn't afford much, but I enjoyed window shopping anyway so I didn't mind. There were a lot of cool styles I learned, and I stuck them in the back of my mind so I could use them later with the clothes already in my closet.

We came across the brand name store, wait… Is this… Kakuzu?!

"Wanna go in?" Itachi peered over me, cocking his head to the side.

I bit my lip, (nearly) squishing my face against the display window. I pouted, "It's too expensive, Itachi-san. There's no way I can afford anything in there without giving up a limb."

Itachi chuckled, ruffling my hair. "You don't have to."

My jaw dropped. "W-What? No way! I'm not letting you spend a single dollar on me!" My words didn't even reach his ears, Itachi already slipping into the shop.

I sighed, walking into the store after him.

"Welcome to Kakuzu!" The front desk woman (her nametag said Shizune) greeted us, bowing. "How may we help you?"

"Help this Miss find a dress. We're going to a Christmas ball."

"Yes!" Shizune dragged me away from Itachi into the change rooms. I glared at Itachi, the stupid (but beautiful) man smirking at me. Fuck you, and your stupid smirk.

I was thrown dresses left and right, probably having one hit me in the face at least once. I tried on all of them huffing and puffing as I let my sides be squeezed into the tight fabric. The last dress that was thrown was dark blue and had a gradient effect into a blood-red colour. It was hand-sewn with glittery-sequins and had a mermaid-shape. I tried it on and holy shit, it fit like a glove. I looked up at the mirror, tugging around on the dress. "Oh, wow…"

Fuck, I'm in love with this one.

I reached over to look at the price tag.

**$120, 000.**

I can't. This is not acceptable.

"Miss, are you alright?"

I scrambled to get out of the dress. "Yes! I'll be out soon!" I threw my clothes on, taking all the dresses back out.

I shoved all the dresses into Shizune's hands, dropping her head to the side, her furrowed eyebrows mocking me. "How were they, Miss?"

I shook my head violently. "None were good. I don't want any of them." I rushed out of the changing area, Itachi stalking along behind me.

"Komo-san? You're not getting anything?" Itachi asked as we got outside.

I shook my head again. "No way. I refuse to let you get anything for me anyway." Itachi looked a little confused, but why does he look so damn smug? Fuck this guy. Literally. No, wait. Stop. "I'll just go look for something with Deidara. He understands my tastes well because I drag him shopping around enough." I threw in a smile to reassure the Uchiha.

Itachi shrugged. He then gave me a small smile, "If you say so."

"Of course I say so!" I lightly punched him in the shoulder, earning a chuckle from him.

* * *

><p>"So, you mean to say that he also took you to dinner as well, afterwards, un?" Deidara was in the midst of stuffing his face with more popcorn. It was definitely an attractive look for him with bits of popcorn stuck to his face.<p>

I shrugged. "Yeah? He insisted because he felt bad for making me walk all day with him, but neither of us getting anything."

Deidara lightly smacked my head with his hand. "Excuses! It was a _date_! He obviously wanted to spend more time with you… un!" Deidara continued to chomp. "I can't believe you didn't let him buy anything for you, un."

"It was not a date!" I pouted, holding the sore area in both my hands. "He offered, but that didn't mean I had to accept! There's no way I could owe him back, and plus, he's still just my boss."

Deidara gave me a look, his hand dropping into the bowl limply. "Komo, you and I both know that at this point, you are denying the feeling. It's fleeting, quite beautiful and such a glamorous piece of art, and this can only be known as love, un."

My face heated up, the colour of my pajama pants. "I do not love him! I mean, okay fine, I do have a crush on my boss, but that's it!"

Deidara snorted, "Yeah, you keep telling yourself that, un."

"Will you still go shopping with me, Deidara?"

"Who else would help you find your stupid dress, un?"

Well, to my surprise, it wasn't Deidara. In fact, it's the person whom I've wanted a gift from the least because I refused to let him do it. But it sat in a neatly wrapped box atop of my desk a day before the party. The box was a glossy black, a red ribbon tied around it, and I knew at that moment who it was from as I saw my name written in a familiar cursive writing.

I opened the card, biting my lip.

_Merry Christmas, Komorebi._

I opened the box, holding my breath, my eyes widening. It was the exact same dress I had tried on Kakuzu! How did he… What kind of magic is he fucking using? My eyes flooded with premature tears, completely touched by the action. Never in my life had someone bought me anything out of their own good will, and at such a high price nonetheless. Or had been my Boss nonetheless. Or someone I've liked for some time now nonetheless.

Deidara's eyes widened as he came by my apartment to see me off to the party. "Komo… you look…"

I blushed, not sure where to put my hands. "Do I look weird?"

"No, Komo, you look good, un." Deidara circled around me. "I can't believe Itachi bought the dress you wanted, un." He studied my face, using his ring finger to brush away some smudged eyeliner. "I hope Itachi has a heart attack when he sees you. Or better yet, get down on his knee and propose, un."

"Deidara!" I exclaimed. "He's not going to do that! At least, not at Kisame's party. He's not that inconsiderate to his friend." I studied my reflection, watching the girl before me twirl in her dress. Her hair was pulled up elegantly into a nice updo (courtesy of the same dunce who bought the dress for her), and her makeup was done to perfection. Her accessories were beautiful and paired well with such a bold dress. She was everything I never expected myself to be.

I felt my phone vibrate, almost dropping it as I rushed to pick it up. "Hello?"

"Komorebi-san? This is your ride, hired by Uchiha-sama. We are ready to leave whenever you are."

"Okay, I'll be there in a moment." I hung up, throwing on a nice jacket. "I'll tell you how it goes soon, Deidara." I kissed my childhood friend on the cheek, waving goodbye to him.

I slipped into a nice-looking car, greeting the driver, trying to calm my own thoughts down. Will I be under-dressed? Over-dressed? What will others think when they see me with Itachi? Am I allowed to get drunk? There's no kids, right? And before I knew it, a sea of questions had floated through me as the driver pulled up to the driveway of an extravagantly decorated home. Well, decorated with sharks, shark-teeth, and underwater themes. Well, I guess I was part of it too since my dress was a mermaid style.

I got out of the car with the help of the driver. He even helped me up the steps of the home, leading me to the coat-check room, where I exchanged my jacket for a number. We said our goodbyes, as I was being led to the main ballroom by a servant of Kisame's. The doors opened, everyone's eyes slowly trickling to me, staring me down. I felt my face heat up, looking down towards my feet, not that I could see them since my dress was covering them.

"Komo-san?" My head snapped up (causing a few whips to my face by my earrings), making eye contact with familiar black eyes.

I smiled, dazzling those around me (unbeknownst to me I suppose), walking up to Itachi. "Itachi-san." He was wearing a dark navy suit with a blood-red button-up shirt, matching the colours of my dress to his. "You look handsome."

"Says the show-stopper." He murmured to me with a small smile, leading me through the crowd, his hand going to the small of my back. His hand had spread short tingles on my back. "Let's go greet Kisame."

We weaved through the crowd, and I spotted the blue shark who was clad in a red suit with a black button-up shirt. He was definitely the type to not wear a tie, as he usually didn't wear one to work either. "Kisame." Kisame turned away from his conversation, smiling at the Uchiha.

"Itachi! And date? I didn't know you scored such a hot chick!" Kisame circled around me, making me feel uncomfortable. If Itachi rolled his eyes in public, he'd be doing so now. "Have I seen you before…?"

I smacked the shark on his shoulder. "Kisame-san! It's me, Komorebi!"

It dawned on Kisame, his eyes widening. "K-Komorebi-san?!" Kisame laughed, giving a big clap on Itachi's back, causing the Uchiha to lean forward. "Itachi, you didn't have to hide it from me that you have the hots for your assistant!"

Itachi tried to look stern with his employee (best friend), but failed miserably as a teeny-tiny blush crept onto his face. "Kisame, you're drunk. Go sober yourself up." Speaking of drunk, Kisame was a little pinker than usual, and louder (he was on the verge of breaking my eardrums), rowdier almost.

Kisame gave a boisterous laugh, the vibrations echoing in my chest. Jesus, someone knock this guy out. "Alrighty, if you do say so, Boss! Have fun!" Kisame winked at Itachi, and I visibly shuddered.

I looked over at Itachi, as he shrugged, "Sorry." I giggled, shaking my head.

We walked around the crowd, greeting people from the offices, and acquaintances of Itachi's as well. Sakura appeared in a cream-coloured dress with Sasuke wearing a matching cream-coloured suit. The both of them looked so good with each other, though it was hard to see that Sasuke could be a lover since he was so cold all the time. But I guess what happens beyond their doors will always be a mystery to me. Except for the making-out part. We also bumped into Opal who ended up coming with Hidan, though their relationship is a complete mind-boggler to me. Hidan swore way too much, while Opal seemed almost emotionless and indifferent to everything but her job.

The party was going very swell, everyone mingling appropriately (except for the host himself). I was sipping on some wine, Itachi hanging around me for the most part.

"Itachi!" We both looked up, a man with bright orange hair and piercings on his face approaching us. Oh my god, is that a loan shark? I was ready to make a run for it, but Itachi had welcomed him with open arms.

"Good evening, Pein." Pein!? "How are you finding tonight?"

Pein chuckled, clinking his glass against Itachi's. "It's alright. Kisame is drunk as usual, but everything is great. Is this the infamous Komorebi-san?" Pein gestured to me, Itachi nodding. Pein took my hand and bent forward, giving a small kiss to my hand. "Pleasure to meet you. I didn't know you were this beautiful. Itachi had been hogging all the pretty girls since day one." Pein chuckled, Itachi's face briefly flushing pink.

I chuckled, slightly recovering from such a chivalrous act. "I'm flattered. Though, I don't think I'd even look half as pretty as I am now during work. I've been really grateful for the care Itachi has given me for tonight."

"Only Itachi knows all the sides to your story." Pein returned, Itachi going completely silent. Was today the day all his friends embarrassed him back for all the things he's done to me? Kisame was definitely the god I needed, but didn't deserve (I'm not even religious)!

Somebody else had slipped into our small group, a man with piercing green eyes and red sclera. He was wearing a light-gray-coloured suit and a matching hat, his face hidden with a surgical mask. "Good evening, all."

Pein smirked. "Took you long enough to get here, Kakuzu."

Wait. Wait. Kakuzu? The d-designer of my dress?! What? I could almost hyperventilate!

Kakuzu eyed me up and down, but not in a pervy way. It was more like he was examining the dress, though that's natural. Gosh, I must've looked horrendous compared to his croquis sketches and the models who wore his dress before!

"Do you like the dress?" I wasn't sure how to react to that question since I wasn't expecting that out of him.

I nodded. "I love it. It fits like a glove, and I'm so pleased with it that I could almost faint."

Kakuzu had an unreadable expression on his face, but then again, it was mostly covered anyway. "Itachi had told me that he wanted this dress, though he wouldn't tell me why." Kakuzu briefly shot Itachi a dirty look. "But now I can see the reason myself."

I smiled. "It's a beautiful dress and it's such a pleasure for me to wear such a piece. Thank you, the both of you."

Itachi and his friends talked a little bit more before everyone dispersed to their dates or to somewhere else. Kakuzu had to fly off to another country, leaving first, so I couldn't ask him more in detail about the dress and his line. You could say I was becoming a fan of his work!

Itachi had been chatting up with previous business partners so I ended up exploring Kisame's place myself. I floated towards Kisame's backyard and sat on a blue, hard-plastic lawn bench, an outdoor heater beside me, looking out into his pool. It was a really big pool, probably Olympic-sized, and he had all those weird shark decorations in and around the pool as well. His backyard was large, a tennis court sitting way in the back, though since it was winter now, it was covered with snow, except for the interior of the pool since it had a clear cover over it. I looked over at one of his shark statues, the teeth of the statue made of actual shark teeth. I wonder how Kisame gets all his décor…

"May I join you?" I looked up, smiling at Itachi, nodding at him. He draped his blazer over my shoulders, taking a seat next to me on the lawn chair. "Finally got away from those businessmen."

"Good work, Boss." I laughed. "I didn't know you had so many connections to tend to at a private party as well."

"My friends are Kisame's friends, and vice versa." Itachi sighed, relaxing into the spot next to me.

It was silent between us, but then I remembered my thoughts about the entire thing going on now. "I didn't know you were friends with Kakuzu. That really was a surprise."

"We went to school together, all of us." Itachi looked up to the sky, admiring the couple of stars that were wandering about. "Pein, Kisame, Hidan, Kakuzu, … and a few more. I think I even went to school with Deidara, though he wouldn't remember me since we only had a few classes together."

"Deidara too? Well, he obviously doesn't remember you that much because he's never talked about you explicitly when I talk to him about you and work." I rested my chin on my palm.

Itachi rose an eyebrow at me. "You talk about me to Deidara?"

"Oh- no, I uh, I vent to him about work a lot since he seems to be the only one I can talk to about it, you know?" I nervously laughed. God, I was such a mess whenever I spoke to him. "I mean, what employee doesn't talk about their Boss?" Especially when he's fucking gorgeous like you.

Itachi laughed, his laughter twinkling in my ears. "It's amusing when you ramble on about a simple question."

I puffed my cheeks out. "I'm just an amusement to you, aren't I?"

"Well, for a fact, you're 23 but you act like you're 13," He poked one of my puffed cheeks, a small smile on his face. "You work really hard at work, but I know that when you go home, you like to laze around instead." Itachi's' small smile evolved into a small smirk. Such a weasel!

"Hey! It's not lazing around, it's called relaxing!" That earned a chuckle from him. "Say, how did you know I liked this dress? I said I didn't want anything from the store."

Itachi shrugged. "I went back in my own time and asked the girl who helped you out." I wrapped the blazer tighter around me. "She said that you sounded astonished with the last dress she gave you."

Someone give Shizune a raise!

"Thank you. I know I've been saying it a lot, but most of the time I feel like I'm not thanking you enough."

Itachi blinked a couple of times, probably at a loss for words. "What are you thanking me for?"

"Well, I thank you for giving me an opportunity with this job. I don't know how I'd be able to survive right now if it weren't for your generous offer. You're a really fair boss too." I smiled. "I've learned a lot from you as well, regarding to work and to my personal life. When we have lunch together, it's the most enlightening part of my day because we can talk about anything, whether it's work-related or not." I stretched my legs out, admiring the dress and the tips of my shoes. "You've also taught me to never prejudge someone based on what you know."

"What do you mean?" Itachi had stretched out his legs too.

"Well, I honestly thought you were an ass when you interviewed me. But slowly, I learned that I had to earn your trust because yours had been broken too many times." I grinned. "Of course, people are supposed to be civil, but I guess civil isn't how you'd greet most people."

Itachi looked genuinely surprised, becoming thoughtful for a bit. "I guess I could say the same for you. Though, I wasn't really sure what to expect from you. You've shown many sides towards me, and so I've learned that you just try to do your best with whatever situation you get put in."

I didn't even bother paying attention to the flush creeping up on my face, Itachi's words sinking into me slowly. "Itachi-san, I-" I'm going to do it.

"You can drop honorifics with me. We've known each other for a while now." Shut up, Itachi, that's beyond my point!

"Itachi, I-" What now?!

Kisame barged into the backyard, clearly shitfaced. "Hello, lovebirds, I'm doing a toast now, please join me inside!" Kisame took both of our hands, dragging us back in. I gave a look to Itachi, his eyes staring into mine.

Stupid Kisame, I'm trying to discuss my feelings with your best friend!

Kisame did his stupid speech, toasting everyone in the process. The lights dimmed, and slow music came on, encouraging couples or dates to dance. I kind of stood there, the couples rushing around me, making me move ungracefully to the edge of the crowd. I literally stumbled on my own feet, but my clumsiness was washed away when I met familiar lavender-tinted eyes, the clumsy replaced with nostalgia.

"Komo…?" Itachi's voice seemed to echo far within my head, though never fully registering in me.

His long hair was braided away from his face, and he was wearing a charcoal- coloured suit that made him look too good for my liking. "Neji-san…" I greeted, quite timid in his presences.

Neji's face was blank, no emotion coming up whatsoever. "Komorebi, what a coincidence to meet you here." He bowed slightly. "I almost didn't recognize you." Neji turned to Itachi, bowing to him as well. "Uchiha-san."

Itachi returned the bow. "Hyuga-san, how are you?"

"The same, as usual. May I borrow Komorebi-san for a dance?" I was only but Itachi's date, but it felt nice to let people assume further. Itachi nodded, the silence in him deafening me. Neji held out a hand, my own slipping into his. He led me to the dance floor, a palm in his, his other palm barely touching my waist. We swayed in silence for a moment, my eyes refusing to look at him.

"Komo?"

The way it rolled off his lips were familiar to my ears. "Hm?"

"It's been a while." Thank you, Captain Obvious. I nodded, agreeing with his statement. "You look prettier since I last remember you."

"Well, when we last saw each other I had the worst cold ever." I shrugged. It's really weird talking to my Ex while dancing with him on the dance floor, knowing your crush was probably watching your every mood. Well, my Boss more than my crush.

"How do you like working for Uchiha?"

"It's great."

"Would you come work for me if I offered you more than what he does?"

I gave him an incredulous look, brows knotted and face scrunched up unpleasantly. I had almost ungracefully lose my balance, tripping over my own feet a little. "Who do you take me for? I'm not some gold digger, Neji." Working with Hachi? I'd rather cut myself up and feed the pieces of me to Kisame's family.

Neji chuckled. "You're right. That was rude of me, I'm sorry." His apology gave me chills.

We continued to sway for another moment, till Neji felt a tap on his shoulder. Neji let go of me, turning around to face Itachi, Itachi bowing slightly. "May I take over from here?" Neji nodded, Itachi taking his place. His hand easily enveloped mine in a comfortable grasp, his other hand sliding to the small of my back, pulling me in closer to his body. Most people would feel uneasy about the short distance between us, but this had felt more natural than a lot of things I have encountered.

"Look at me." His voice sent chills down my spine and to the back of my neck.

I looked up at Itachi, his eyes soft, a small smile spreading on his face. "What did the Hyuga want with you?"

"He gave me a job offer." I snorted, though I realized that was completely un-ladylike. Not that I was trying to be a lady.

"How do you know him?"

I bit my lip, harder than I expected, a drop of blood landing on my tongue. I sucked on my lip a little before replying with, "He's my Ex. The one I talked about to you before."

"Hm." What the fuck did that mean? "Do you have a thing for CEO's, Komo?"

"What?! No!" Itachi chuckled, pulling me closer so that I was almost flush against his chest. "Who said I liked more than one CEO anyway? Besides, Neji wasn't anything when I met him in college. He was just some rich boy who needed to take over his family business eventually." Stay cool, Komo, you can do it. What does he know about who I like anyway?

"So, do you like someone right now?"

What is he doing?! "I'd prefer not to tell you, Itachi." I was ready half an hour ago, but not anymore.

"You never fail to amuse me, Komo." Am I really just a source of amusement for this guy? "Perhaps, more than need be…"

The song ended, a caterer coming by with a glass of wine. I drank it quickly, trying to wet my throat, though alcohol usually had the opposite effect. I pulled away from Itachi, murmuring breathily into his ear, "I need to take a breather alone." He was confusing me.

I went back to my lawn chair, plopping down with Itachi's blazer wrapped around me, half a glass of wine in my mind. Why did I do that? I made myself so obvious now because I'd say it's pretty obvious that I liked him. I wasn't sure if I loved him, but I'm sure with time, it would be an indefinite answer that I do. He's everything I wanted in a guy, and it's ironic because I even told him what I wanted. Thinking back to my conversation with him while we were dancing, he probably already knew, which was why he asked if I had a thing for higher-ups.

Gosh, Komo, you are so stupid.

With all this thinking, I had ended up drink the rest of the wine, the warm fuzzy feeling spreading through my body. I was snoozing on the lawn chair, curled up in a ball trying to keep myself warm. A pair of arms wrapped around me, bringing me into their chest, and I involuntarily clung on to them, their being much warmer than mine. I felt soft lips touch me on the forehead before I completely blacked out.

* * *

><p>AN:

Good evening, everybody, hope you all had a well-rested weekend, depending on where you are in the world. Here's a longer chapter to make up for the short update on Friday! I hope this was a good read, and as always, you guys are all such dolls, and I can see that my story is interesting to a lot of people. I forgot to include in my last Author's Note, but I'm aiming to finish this story at around fifteen chapters, so we're technically half-way there already. I'll see how everything goes!

Replies:

**Guest: **Thank you, your words are motivation for me!

Until next chapter,  
>tofufuu<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

I opened my eyes, instantly regretting it as the sunlight hit me like a slap in the eyes. I felt around me, feeling the familiar sheets of my bed, sorta cold, but still mine. I opened my eyes again, this time more slowly, and saw that I was indeed in my own room.

I sat up in bed, rubbing my head, though I didn't feel any particular discomfort. Probably just the way my hair tangled when… Wait, I didn't take out my updo… Who did?

I jumped out of bed, padding out to the living room, noticing that there were blankets and a pillow neatly folded up on the sofa. I peeked into the kitchen, some washed dishes on the drying rack and a plate of food on the table, a hot-pink sticky note stuck to the plastic-wrapped dish. I leaned over, plucking the note off the plate as I took a seat in the chair.

_Hope you slept well, Komo._

_I also hoped that you didn't mind me intruding in your home last night. You're quite the heavy sleeper._

_Rest up, I'll see you soon.  
><em>_Itachi_

H-Heavy sleeper?! Was I snoring? I mean, I know I didn't remember much from last night after I passed out on the lawn chair…

I sort of remember Itachi carrying me to the car and taking me home too, since I had smelled his scent clearly before I buried myself further int-

Oh my god, KOMO! Why would you do that?! Snuggling up to your Boss is a big no-no!

I groaned and slumped into the chair, resting my head beside the plate of food. It smelled good, so I touched the plate. Oh, it was still warm, which meant he hadn't left that long ago. I sat up straight again and wolfed the contents down, not realizing that I was so hungry. After cleaning the dishes away, I fetched the folded blanket and pillow from the couch, getting a whiff of Itachi's cologne. Fuck. Me. He smelled so comforting…

No, Komo, you can't be that girl!

I shook my head and threw everything back into the linen closet, shoving some clothes on to my body as I headed over to Deidara's place, a gift in each arm. It had been lightly snowing all day, so there was a thin layer of snow on the ground outside. The one thing that bugged me the most about the snow was when the snowflakes would stick to my lashes while it was floating down. Sure, it might looked cool, but I couldn't see a damn thing.

I got to the lobby of Deidara's apartment building, shaking the snow off me. I treaded upstairs, my shoes making squeaky noises as I walked up, and called out his name when I reached his floor. "Deidara! Open the damn door!"

The door slowly opened, revealing a red-head peeking out the door, his eyes unblinking. "Good morning, Komo-chan." Sometimes Sasori scared me.

I smiled. "Good morning, Sasori. Deidara's inside, right?"

Sasori nodded, letting me into Deidara (or the both of them)'s home. I shook my boots off, leaving my purse and keys on his table. Deidara came out of his room, yawning. "I didn't know you'd come so early, un."

I grinned, holding the two gifts out for them. "Merry Christmas, you two."

"You didn't have to, Komo. I didn't even get you anything… un." Deidara scratched the back of his head.

I shook my head, laughing. "It's okay. Just consider it a returning favour for all the years you've housed my emotions."

Deidara took the red box out of my hand, and Sasori took the gold box out of mine. Both of them opened it simultaneously, their eyes lighting up as they saw the contents of the box.

In Deidara's box, I had gotten him popping candy, a clay mug that I made with my own two hands, a bag of rare coffee beans, and some expensive nail polish. In Sasori's box there was, carving tools for wood-work, a couple pairs of glass eyes for his work, a Deidara felt-plushie that I made, and a nail polish from the same brand as Deidara's.

"I'm sorry if the hand-made gifts look really wonky, I had tried my hardest at the workshops I attended." I gave a nervous laugh, poking my index fingers together.

Deidara pulled me into a hug, Sasori taking the box from his hand so his boyfriend can fully circle his arms around me. His lean arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me in a gentle embrace. "They're great, Komo." I swore he sniffled, so I grinned, hugging him back tightly. "Ow, don't suffocate me, un!"

"I'm glad you like your gifts Deidara." I pulled away from the hug, smiling at the both of them. Sasori, though he was never the talker, seemed to enjoy his gifts as he studied his new carving tools. "Oh, I have on more thing!" I reached into my purse, pulling out a tissue-paper-wrapped object. "Open it!" I handed to the both of them. Sasori took the tape off carefully, but Deidara had pulled the entire wrapping off without a care. The both of them gawked at what they were holding.

It was a framed picture of when they first started dating back a couple of years ago. "For some reason, I found this picture at my place so I decided to give it back to you nicely." In the picture, Deidara and Sasori were shyly looking at each other, a pretty candid photo if you asked me.

Deidara found a nice place to put the framed photo in his bedroom. The three of us chatted for a bit, but I had decided to do one more stop for Christmas. I looked at my watch, getting up. "Alright guys, I'll see you later. I have to hand something to someone." I didn't let them ask me as I had dashed out the door, giggling all the way out.

I rushed to my own place, taking a quick shower and dressing slightly better than if I were to see Deidara. I called the office and directed myself to Itachi's phone.

"This is Uchiha Itachi." He answered, and I almost breathed a sigh of relief. It was a lucky guess, but I knew he was a workaholic so there was a big chance he'd be there at the offices today.

"Uchiha-san, what are you doing at work on Christmas day?"

A pause over the phone. "I should be asking why aren't you with me at work, Komorebi-san." I could almost hear the amusement in his voice.

"Hey, you could've woken me up, I wouldn't have minded waking up to you." Was that too flirty? Shit.

A light chuckle. "What brings you to call me?"

"I was wondering if I could come by your place to drop Jun's present off." I twirled the phone cord in my fingers. It was an old black rotary phone, but it was my favourite.

There was some light scribbling on the other end. "Sure. I can pick you up, and we can head over together, if you want."

A ride in Itachi's car? Ooh.

"Sounds great." We said our goodbyes and hung up. Do I look kid-appropriate? Do I still look cute? I must've went through fifty outfits before settling on my original outfit. I really needed to go shopping with Deidara.

Itachi's sleek black car pulled up to the front of my building. I waved, Itachi jogging out to open the trunk. He took the bags from my hand and plopped it in, then opening the car door for me. Gosh, I've never been in a car this nice before. Everything was black, sleek and possibly leather. Itachi had also been the safe driver I expected him to be, and his car had smelled like his cologne. The smell of a sex-god- Okay.

After some small talk, we had pulled up to his house not too long after.

Holy, mother of god. It was a beautiful white house, iron gates surrounding it with a giant decorated pine tree out on his front yard. The security guard that manned the front gate greeted Itachi, Itachi greeting him back with the utmost kindness (as expected!). The driveway was heated so there wasn't a speck of snow on the ground where his car drove on. He rolled to a stop up to the front of his house, a chauffeur taking the car from Itachi, Itachi grabbing the bags out from the trunk. He led me up the stairs, and entered, the smell of food and Itachi (they were basically the same thing) wrapping around my nose.

"Itachi-niisan!" A familiar voice hit my ears, and I swore I probably could have recognized it from miles away. Jun nearly tumbled down the stairs if it weren't for Itachi grabbing the child and lifting him into the air. Jun was laughing, clinging on to the black-haired man.

"Look who I brought." Jun peered behind Itachi, and I smiled at him.

"Nee-san!" Itachi let the kid run to me, Jun clinging on to my neck as I lifted him up. "Komo-nee, what are you doing here?"

I smiled, pinching his nose. "I'm here so I can give Jun-kun his Christmas present."

"Present?" Jun's face lit up.

I nodded, slowly dropping Jun to the floor. Itachi took his jacket and shoes off, the servants bringing his stuff out of the way. They also took my jacket and shoes away, making me do the awkward shuffle. "Let's go open it on the couch." Itachi led the both of us to his living room.

I stared in awe at the room. It was a white-coloured room with a white couch and grey-coloured wooden floors. He had a high-tech sound system with a very large-screened TV, though I'm sure he also has a theatre room somewhere in his home too. He also had some fans decorating the living room, some fans dating back to the ancient days.

Jun hopped on to the couch, ready for his present. I took out the box from the bag, moving it aside. It was wrapped with kunai-patterned wrapping paper, and a big red bow smacked on the centre of it. "Merry Christmas, Jun." I grinned, watching him tear the wrapping paper apart. Inside the box was a picture book, and an arts supply case, filled with markers, crayons, pencil crayons, different kinds of pencils and stencils. The supply case fixed itself to be an easel too.

He held the box up in awe, staring at the front. "I know how much Jun likes to draw, and he draws such beautiful pictures, so I thought he would like some more grown-up tools to help him practice." I saw Jun's eyes dazzle with wonder. "And this book," I took the picture book from the box, flipping it to a certain page. "Has Jun's work published into it." I handed the book to Jun, his eyes widening like giant plate saucer's. He was astonished to see his pictures in a book he could read and show others.

"How did you do that?" Itachi asked, pretty surprised himself.

I shrugged. "I submitted his work to a company who publishes interesting pieces by children. It was done on a whim, but…" I looked at Jun, smiling at him. "It's just something I could do to keep him going."

"I'm going to go try this upstairs!" Jun took the supply case with him, a servant escorting him upstairs to accompany him.

"I also have something for you, Itachi." I reached into the bag and brought out a black box. "I'm kind of embarrassed by it." I handed it to him, a blush radiating on my cheeks. He stared at the box for a moment, blinking a couple of times. No words expelled from his mouth, but he took the box from my shaky hands.

Itachi opened it, revealing two things inside. A new (expensive as shit, you wouldn't believe the arm and leg I spent!) fountain pen, and a hand-knitted scarf by me. "I know you have a lot of pens already, and I'm sure you get a lot of scarves as gifts from fangirls or maybe you buy them on your own, but I thought I'd give a try and just, do it, you know? So I'm really sorry if these gifts are cliché, and if you don't like it that's okay too! Just, obviously, I-"

"I love them... Thank you."

"Wait, really?" I was almost flabbergasted.

Itachi didn't say more, leading me upstairs to his… room?!

Oh wow, I'm going to be in Uchiha Itachi's room.

Itachi opened the door to his room, a cool air wafting past me. He turned on the lights, the sight of his room coming into focus. It was a neat and tidy room, consisting of a giant office desk, a king-sized bed, a couple of book shelves and a small table near his balcony door. There was also a fireplace near his desk. Most of the accents were dark colours contrasting with white. A very Itachi-like room.

"Sit wherever you like."

I took a seat on the end of his bed, basically having to climb on to it. "Your bed is massive. If I were you, I would not be able to get up in the morning…" Itachi had a whisper of a smile on his face, before heading to his desk to place his new fountain pen on to it. He then moved gracefully to his closet, putting the scarf away. He shuffled in there for so long, that I just fell back on to his bed, getting comfy. I pulled the throw folded on his bed over my body, making a mummy out of myself. Gosh, this was so comfy…

"Comfortable?"

Itachi's voice woke me up, his head looming over mine. I rolled over, burying my face into his bed. "I'm a mummy." I elicited a small chuckle from him. I heard him shuffle over to the bed as well, taking a seat on it. I moved my head to look at him, Itachi reading some business journal. I slithered around, so that I could look at Itachi from a closer distance. Itachi looked up, looking quite amused with me. "Itachi, what are we?"

He rose an elegant eyebrow at me. "What do you mean?"

"Are we colleagues?"

"Yes."

"Are we business partners?"

"I'd assume so."

"Are we friends too, then?"

Itachi paused. "If you weren't my friend, I wouldn't allow you to roll around my bed."

I laughed, feeling slightly childish and embarrassed. "This is a little weird for me, honestly speaking." Itachi waited for me to continue. "You're my Boss, and yet we hang out outside of the office, and I'm even in your room, lounging around on your bed. I wouldn't have done this with a previous employer…" I looked up at the ceiling, examining the smooth surface.

Silence had passed us, and I thought it was because Itachi had went back to his journal. But he spoke up, "Would it be less weird if we were more than friends?"

"No!" I sat up, eyes wide like I was a caught-deer. "I mean, not that I would mind being more than friends with you, heck ninety-percent of the girls on this world would love to be lovers with you, but what I mean was that-" I was cut off, Itachi's silent laugh breaking my thoughts. "Itachi!" My face felt hot, and I'm sure if you were to flick water at me, it'd boil right off of my face. I took a pillow off his bed and threw it at him, hitting him square in the face.

He stared at me, his laugh completely stopping. Oh, shit. I was in so much trouble…

I ran from the bed, Itachi closing his book and chasing me around his room. I ran out into the hall, straight into another lit room. I realized it was Jun's as soon as he looked up at me bursting in. "Jun-kun! Help me! Itachi's here to-"

"Komo!" I screamed at Itachi's voice and I took Jun with me, Jun breaking into a laughter as Itachi chased us around the home.

"Quick! Find a place to hide!" Both Jun and I split up, Jun headed towards the dining room, while I hid behind the couch in the living room.

The whole house became silent, the only sounds coming from Itachi's footsteps. I got on my stomach, looking through under the couch to see his socked-feet padding softly across the floor. He stopped in front of the living room, and I held my breath, my heart speeding up. He turned to go towards the dining room, but I pushed a book out from under the couch so I could 'save' Jun.

"Hn." He walked slower towards the sofa and I slowly rolled around to the adjacent side, using the arm rest of the couch as a cover. I stayed there, crouched, bringing my knees up to my chest. A couple of minutes passed, though it could have been seconds, but no sign of Itachi. Was he gone…?

"Boo." I nearly screamed if it wasn't for the hand that gently clasped over my mouth. I smelled Itachi, and turned around, facing him. He had the same small smile on his face, and was very amused.

He put his finger to his lips, and I cocked my head to the side, wondering what he was about to do. "Itachi, what are y-"

Itachi's arms enveloped me in a hug, his arms pulling me closer to his chest. I felt my heart racing to get blood into my system, my face burning again. I felt his chin rest on my shoulder, his nose nuzzling into my locks. I shut my eyes, letting the man embrace me. He whispered into my ear, lips brushing against it, "Thank you." My head felt light, and those familiar butterflies came up again in my stomach, fluttering against my chest, ready to burst out. I felt my face heat up, and I didn't know what to do so I just let him hug me.

Itachi's arms loosened, and he offered a hand to pull me up. He held on to my hand as we went into the dining room, but saw that Jun was under the table, already asleep.

"Poor guy, we got his adrenaline up so high." I murmured quietly, bending down to pick Jun up, his arms involuntarily wrapping around my neck.

"Mommy… I love you…" I felt my heart shatter to pieces. How could he still love that monster he called mother?

I stroked the back of his head, kissing it. "I love you too." I whispered, following Itachi up the stairs. I tucked him into bed, pulling the covers all the way to his chin. I brushed his bangs away, kissing him on the forehead. Itachi had also bent down to kiss Jun on his cheek.

We both left his room, heading back to Itachi's. I snatched the throw blanket from his bed, and curled myself up in front of the fireplace. Itachi turned it on, the fire crackling away. He had also taken a seat next to me, handing me a mug of water. I quietly told him my thanks, taking a sip from the mug.

I needed to get Jun out of there.

"What's on your mind?"

Itachi's voice opened a sanctuary in my mind. I sighed, knowing I couldn't hide much from him. "I'm just worried about Jun. I know there isn't much I can do, but dammit, I hate feeling so helpless." I sighed again. "It must be even harder on you, since you grew so attached to the little brat."

Itachi chuckled a little. "I would give anything up for Jun. I'm thankful to have you by my side at a time like this." I shrugged, feeling slightly less bummed out by his comment. "You said you weren't even good with kids. I'm doubting it."

I blushed. "It was a lie." Sorta. "I've always wanted my own family, I guess. I'd want to give love to a child, whether it be my own or adopted because I never got it myself." But only if I can have you as mine, okay?

Itachi pondered over what I had said. "So, do you want to be more than friends with me? My bed is a little too big…" He sounded so cheeky, very uncharacteristic of him, despite everything that's been going on.

I had realized what he said, and with pink cheeks, I exclaimed, "Shut up!"

* * *

><p>Kisame came by to drop a gift off for his best friend. I noticed it was also getting late, so Kisame had offered to give me a ride home. If not, I would've just stayed at Itachi's place, but I've already intruded on his life so much.<p>

Kisame's car was just as luxurious, but was a little bit hotter than Itachi's car. "I see Itachi's take quite a liking to you." Damn cold-blooded animal.

"It's not what you think, Kisame!" I pouted, crossing my arms over my body. "I just worry about him and Jun, you know?"

"Ah, speaking of Jun," Kisame stopped at a red light. "We have an annual conference with the Hyuga Corporation. Would you be interested in going?" I could see the correlation between Jun and Neji already.

"Yes."

Kisame laughed, speeding off again. "Itachi, won't let you go, I hope you know."

I frowned. "Why not? It's not his choice, is it?"

"It's not his choice, but he'll try to find other ways to get someone else to go." Kisame cleared his throat. "He doesn't want you to go because every time we let someone go, they never come back."

"What do you mean?"

"Hyuga bribes them; they get a better salary, a better title, better benefits, do less work… The usual."

"But Itachi won't think I'm like that, will he?"

Kisame shook his head. "Nah, doubt it. But he knows your past with the Hyuga president. Things can still happen."

"I'm going to be the one that goes to the Hyuga's conference, and that's final."

Kisame snorted, "But there's a catch," There always is, isn't there? "The conference requires us to trade employees. So if we're offering you to the conference, Hyuga will also have to give up a staff member that is of equal or greater title."

"So?" I scoffed, getting impatient with the shark.

"That means," He turned, pulling up to my home. "In order to trade you over, we'll have to take Hachi back for the meanwhile." Is that it? It's okay, no one likes Hachi anyway. Not even Itachi anymore.

* * *

><p>I had asked Kisame to send me the details of this Hyuga-Uchiha conference. I read through the entire document from head to toe, wondering if this would work in my favour. But basically it had said,<p>

_"Each year, one employee from each company will switch and work with the other group. This will allow a stronger bond between the two companies, as no secrets can be kept hidden. This will also allow future ideas to form faster, allowing faster transactions between both. The employees are kept there for seven business days to allow a full experience to develop the relationship. The employee will go through the same hardships as the original worker. If conditions are in favour, the employees may make a permanent switch."_

Seemed pretty simple to me.

All I had to do was to get some scope on Hachi. I knew how to do it with the help of Pein, as long as he would commence the plan with me. I just needed one reason for the jury to be suspicious of how Hachi wasn't being a proper parent, and I'd be able to expose the shit out of her.

This bitch is going down.

In the morning of the meeting to commence the conference, I had posted a sticky note onto Itachi's computer monitor saying, _Please, don't be mad at me._

I had won the votes, and had been chosen to move to the Hyuga group for the seven business day conference. Itachi had looked nothing but annoyed, knowing he didn't have a say in a vote-system. His one vote of no versus six votes of yes. It was a unanimous decision to have Itachi's best employee to set the score straight, and no one was worried that I would turn over to Neji's side. It seemed straightforward; I would go there, kick Neji's ass a little, then come back and have good news for everyone. But no one knew my ultimate reason for going.

I will dig up Hachi's office if I have to. I will find evidence. I will do this on my own, and no one can stop me.

* * *

><p>AN:

Ooh, I wonder what's going to happen next! I'm so happy that I'm getting so many hits on my story! I'm also approaching the ending of the story myself, so I don't have to worry about thinking about an ending when finals roll around. Hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoy writing it!

tofufuu


	10. Chapter 10

Making the switch to Neji's company was strange. The building felt like a complete mirror image to the Uchiha building with everything backwards and upside down to me, literally and figuratively. The people weren't as friendly, and they all dressed boringly. Nothing was fun about this company, and they had seriously meant business.

I could see myself being hung from the top of this building. It was so dreadful.

I made it to Neji's office, knocking on the door. "Good morning." He said, without looking up from his work. Gosh, his hair was always so flawless. Confirmed: He does use Pantene shampoo. But it still could not compare to Itachi's. Itachi's hair was soft and shiny, and I just wanted to run my fingers through his head all day.

"Good morning, Neji-san."

He looked up, blinking a couple of times. "I didn't expect **you** to transfer over to my office for the little while."

I shrugged, lazily taking a seat in front of him. His office wasn't as nice, his view wasn't as nice. None of this was Itachi's office. "I offered. I know you anyway."

"What kind of coffee do I like?"

I sighed, "Black."

Neji smirked a little. "I didn't think you'd remember." Fuck you and your stupid tests.

"I did because we like our coffee the same way." I studied my nails. "So, what do you have planned for me today?"

"You think I'm going to let you off because I knew you?" Knew? Neji, that's so cold. We used to date for heaven's sakes!

"It was worth a shot." I said back to him, sarcastically. "What do you want me to do?"

Neji finished writing on his piece of paper, capping his pen. He slid the piece of paper to me; it was a list. "This is your task-list."

* * *

><p>I wasn't joking when I said I would hang myself.<p>

Neji was a slave-driver. I know I did a lot of things voluntarily at Itachi's office because I knew he'd appreciate me, and developed a lot of respect for me over time because of the things I did. I did the job at his office flawlessly, with not only those reasons, but with the same values we shared as a businesspeople. Neji? He was, I'd say, nowhere near as pleasant.

I had done most of the things effortlessly, but they were all so… condescending? This was all entry-level stuff! Where was the actual business part of this job? Was I just here to sit and look pretty? Did I not participate in meetings and give presentations? Did I only give out coffee? Not to mention, a couple of the people on the head team was so pervy, and I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable every time we had a weekly meeting. They were staring at me like I was some piece of meat, and, gosh… This was just not Uchiha Corp.! Nothing about this was appealing, and I'm so glad that I didn't bother with Neji further before!

"Go eat in Hachi's room for now. They have to clean yours." Neji said to me, monotonously. I nodded, sticking my tongue out at his retreating form. Wait… A light bulb went on atop of my head.

This is my chance!

I closed the door behind me, creeping in as if I was some top-secret spy. I searched through her unlocked drawers, noting that there wasn't even much to being with. I went through her cabinets, and still, nothing. I went through the binds on her desk, and yet again, nothing. Why? I mean, though I never kept anything personal at work, I knew Hachi wouldn't be as smart as me (ha). I nearly gave up, slamming a fist on the desk. The sudden move caused a latch to open on the side of her drawers, way down at the bottom corner where my feet would accidentally kick in the process of crossing my legs.

I crouched down, peering at it, noticing that there was a dial. A safe! This must be something!

"What are you doing?"

I rapidly sat up, but to only bump my head hard on to the underside of the desk. "Ow, fuck!" I quickly shut the latch, crawling out from under the desk, looking at Neji. "I… I dropped my earring." He rose an eyebrow at me (it wasn't as elegant as Itachi's either).

"Can I take Hachi's office? I- I prefer it here. It's much sunnier, and, it's… closer to yours?"

I threw that last excuse in, hoping to throw him off. Guys like flattery, right? "Hn. Fine."

That bought me a lot more time to try and decipher her room.

"On one condition." Of-fucking-course. "You're to come with me tonight for a business dinner. Dress nicely." Fuck, I don't want to sit with lecherous businessmen! "Move your things to this room when you're done lunch. I want you to be back to work by one, sharp." That was also another thing different. I didn't eat with Neji. Most people went to go eat with their colleagues, but never with Neji. He was a workaholic as well, but the difference was that didn't know how to enjoy life a little.

As soon as he left the room, I had examined the desk for more secret compartments. I'd also have to figure out where she'd keep a spare key for those locked drawers.

I needed to know more about this witch.

Neji had picked me up later in the night, driving the both of us to some fancy-looking restaurant. Gosh, I suddenly missed the teashop too. "I'll assume you'll be on your best behaviour."

"I'm not a child, Neji."

We both went into the restaurant, the waitress bringing us to a private room with some old guy who had long white-grey hair. He definitely looked like a perv. His eyes were squinty, and he sat with his legs open, his arms draped over the back of the booth seat. I've never seen him before in the business industry, and this entire thing was starting to make me nervous.

"Ah, Neji! I didn't know you had such a pretty assistant." He smirked at me, and it took all my willpower to not shudder at him. "Come, sit with me." He patted the empty spot next to him, where I'd basically have to sit on him. The things I'd do to get out of this situation. Neji nudged me forward, and I took a seat, biting the inside of my cheek. "What's your name, babe? Or can I just call you that?"

"Rebi." He pulled me closer to him, and I could smell the alcohol on his breath. I looked at Neji, and he seemed almost helpless. I know this was big for us to sign a deal, but why did I have to be here?

"Rebi? What an interesting name for an interesting girl." He winked. "So, Neji, what did you call me out for?"

"Just a short talk."

"Ah, you've brought such a pretty girl with you too… I'll sign whatever, as long as you leave her here with me."

I shot a look at Neji. He wouldn't dare.

"I will be back in half an hour." My eyes widened, Neji sliding some papers to him.

The drunk pervert signed the papers, Neji tucking the manila folder under his arm. Another reason why I'll always thinking about Itachi everywhere I go. The stupid fucking manila-coloured folder. "Thirty minutes sharp." He got up and left, rounding the corner of the room.

Hyuga Fucking Neji. I will fucking-

"Now, Rebi-chan, come here!" He dragged me closer to him, and thank god he was too drunk to know I was struggling against him. Or he did know and pretended to not see it. I didn't know which was worse, actually. He wrapped his arms tighter around me, pulling me on to his lap, making me straddle him. "Give me a big kiss!" He pursed his lips, glossy with saliva, closing his eyes. I grabbed his cheeks, trying to push him away from me. "Feisty, aren't you? It's ok, I like mine lively!"

Itachi, please help me… I was pinned down to the booth at this point, my wrists held up by him. He was strong for someone so shitfaced. His hands were roaming around my body, fiddling with the hem of my dress as he pushed it up. His lips were coming so close to mine, and tears had already threatened to spill out of my eyes. I shut my eyes tightly, waiting for the impact of disgusting lips on mine, but it never came.

Instead, the man slumped forward, falling asleep on me. He was then lifted off me, being flipped on to his back. I looked up, and never in my life had I been so relieved to see Itachi. He had a worried look on his face, but it was masked behind anger.

"Komorebi." He lifted me up by my shoulders, putting a blazer over them. He led me out of the restaurant, taking me to his car, his grip tight on my shoulders. He almost cut the circulation from them, but turned me around, making me face him. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Where's Neji?"

I flinched at his tone. Never, has Itachi been mad at me.

"I can't tell you." I looked away, avoiding his eyes at all times.

"Bullshit!" Itachi slightly raised his voice at me, completely annoyed. "The contract says there are no secrets-"

"-Unless stated otherwise." I mumbled, my hands still shaking. "Neji had asked you if it was ok for me to go to a business dinner, right? That's what I was doing, and that's all you can know."

"Komo, come back to the company. Let me send someone else." Did he sound desperate? No, please don't do this to me; I'm so close…

"No." I looked at him, my eyes still glassy-looking from before. "I can't. Don't worry about me, Itachi. Worry about yourself." I smiled a little, handing his blazer back to him. I noticed that he was wearing the scarf I knitted him, but I didn't comment on it. "Remember what I wrote to you? Don't forget."

I turned my back to him, walking away.

It was a cold night, but then again, it's been cold for a while now.

* * *

><p>Days passed, and I knew that I was running out of time. I could not find the shit I needed, and Neji was making up more ridiculous tasks for me to do. I even once had a task to go dust his desk, though there wasn't a speck of dust on it. He was toying with me, and it probably was some sadist part of him he couldn't satisfy while we were together.<p>

Every day, I would work overtime to try and find the key. I chatted with Pein on the phone for short periods at the end of the day, trying to gain his advice. He knew what I was doing could be considered illegal, but he said he would put up with me since I was Itachi's friend, and he knew about my reasons.

I would stoop down this low to help him and Jun out.

"Komorebi-san, why do you have to keep this as a secret from Itachi?" Pein's voice broke my chain of thoughts.

I smiled, albeit sadly. "It's only natural to want to keep it a secret from everyone. It would be less messy this way." There was a pause on the phone, as if Pein was waiting for me to continue. "If I were to soil anything, the only one to blame is me, and so, I'd be able to cut connections off much easier that way. Does this make sense?"

"Hm. Itachi is still unpleased with you. He seems stressed over the phone."

"Why would he? He has Hachi as an assistant, no?"

Pein chuckled. "Hachi-san will never replace what you've given to Itachi."

"What does tha-"

"Ah, Itachi is on the other line. I will talk to you tomorrow. Goodbye, Komorebi-san." Pein hung up quickly. I sighed.

I can't stop thinking about Itachi, his office, my job with him, and all the wonderful people I met there. I really didn't truly knew what I had back there till I moved to work with stupid Neji. The way Itachi would give me an amused smile when I told him something mildly funny. Or the way Kisame would give me a sharky smile, while ruffling my hair. Or, the way Opal would greet me happily, but glare at Hidan. Or, the way I'd catch Sakura's apologetic smile whenever I caught her canoodling with Sasuke at the offices.

They have become my family just as much as Deidara was to me.

I moved my chair back, looking at the latch. It mocked me every single day because I knew something valuable was in there. Why else would Hachi put it in a safe?

I crouched down, getting on all fours as I sat and played with the combinations. I tried everything I knew- Itachi's birthday, Hachi's birthday, Jun's birthday… even their marriage and divorce dates (don't ask how I got them)! How come I couldn't get the stupid thing to open?

"Try 2-5-1-0." Neji's voice scared the shit out of me.

I peeked out from under the desk. Gosh, I was so busted. "Um…"

"Just do it."

I crawled back underneath, turning the knobs accordingly. It clicked open! I looked through everything, noticing a lot of it was bills for botox, random vacations, and- Wait, what's this?

I took it out, reading through it.

Oh my gosh, is this what I think it is?

This is an unused drug prescription for schizophrenia! She… She's obviously in no condition to take care of her son! I dug through the safe more, finding the keys for all the locked drawers as well. I stood up, dusting myself off, smiling to myself. Everything I skimmed through had a contribution to her not being able to take care of her child. There was no way she could get child support with all these bills for luxury items! Now that I found out she has a mental illness, there is no way they'd let her keep Jun!

"Did you find what you were looking for?"

I looked up, almost forgetting he was there. My eyes widened, Neji approaching me. "U-um…"

His hand came up to underneath my chin, caressing it. "I knew you had a plan all along. You wouldn't even come to this company with my offer. You can fool everyone in your office, but you can't fool me, Komorebi."

"Shut up. Use honorifics with me, we're not together anymore." I glared at him, smacking his hand away.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He returned the glare, his just as icy as mine or maybe even more so. "You think you can get away with private documents?"

"You gave me the damn combination!" I exclaimed.

Neji brought his hand back to my face, squeezing it hard. "Listen to me, Komorebi. You will do as I say, and I will let you use this information as you please."

"Or what? What kind of dirt do you have on me, huh?" I spat out at him, my hand going to his wrist.

"You think what happened at the restaurant went unnoticed?"

"So what?" My grip on his wrist tightened. "I'm going to look like a big fucking whore, whoop-de-doo."

"You think that's going to have a good image for your company? Itachi will have to let you go. You'll never be able to find another job in this industry ever again."

I ripped his hand off me, massaging my sore face. "…What do you want?" I could only imagine the possibilities with this one.

* * *

><p>I sipped from my coffee cup, mauling over everything that had happened within the last couple of days. Neji had given me quite the ultimatum, and I was not pleased with it at all. It would sever everything I've been doing for the last five months, and… I couldn't help but feel that I had no choice at all.<p>

"Komorebi-san?" I looked up, my eyes meeting the familiar orange-haired man. I stood up and shook his hand. "Sorry to make you wait so long."

"It's quite alright, Pein-san. I called you out on a short notice anyway." I gave him a curt smile, but really, nothing I did now seemed to lighten my mood.

"What did you bring me today?"

I took out a large orange envelope, the orange quite close to his hair colour, now that I thought about it. "You can look through here, and tell me what seems to be good. Take it with you, and bring it back to me as soon as you have everything you've been looking for." I frowned, looking into the black liquid.

"Komorebi-san? Are you alright? You look quite discoloured." Pein furrowed his eyebrows, reminding me of when Itachi would do it out of concern.

"I'm alright. I've just been…" I looked at him, blinking. "Tired, I guess."

"You don't seem to be as enthusiastic as you were before. All the things inside this envelop are very valid for a solid proof."

I gave him a small smile. "Lots of things on my mind, Pein-san. I'm excited that we'll get the justice we deserve, but, I still have other commitments nagging at me."

Pein patted me on the shoulder, a somewhat comforting motion for me. After all, all I've faced the past week were concrete jungle walls and my stupid temporary-boss. "You'll go through with it, I promise."

I nodded, hoping for myself too. "I'll see you another day, Pein. I wish you the best of luck with everything. Tell Itachi I said good luck to him too, and that-" Pein looked at me unblinkingly, waiting. "And that, his company will still be my favourite to work at."

"What do you me-"

"Goodbye, Pein." I smiled one last time, leaving the confused lawyer behind.

* * *

><p>"What's this?" Itachi briefly looked at the white envelope on his desk.<p>

"I wish to be transferred to Hyuga-san's company."

Itachi had stopped writing, looking fully at me now. "Komorebi, is everything okay?"

I bowed at a ninety-degree angle, not daring to look at him. "Thank you for taking care of me all this time, Uchiha-san." I stood up straight, finally staring at his black eyes. They were so dark, so mysterious, and so enticing. I wish I could drown in them forever. "You've taught me so much, and I don't think I could ever repay you."

"Why?"

"Neji has requested for my stay, for the departure of your company."

He had stood up from his seat now. "But why?" I knew Itachi was getting frustrated with me, his fists clenching.

I smiled, my lips twitching at the sad action, wanting to do the opposite. "_Because, I'm in love with my Boss._" Moments passed as we gazed into each other's eyes, the both of us trying to desperately find something in each other. "I'm sorry, I wish you all the best."

"Komo, wait-"

I turned on my heel, starting to walk out. "Good luck, Uchiha-san."

"Stay…"

"Goodbye." I shut the door quietly behind me, the tears that had wanted to fall so bad when I looked into his sad eyes, finally falling. His final word had broken my heart, and all I could feel was as if something was squeezing my heart tightly, constricting the pumping blood to all my other body parts. It was wrenching the organ out of my body, knowing no mercy.

I had went home with blurry vision and a torn heart.

* * *

><p>AN:

Oohh, the plot continues to move forward! You may be mad at me, but things will fall into place, I promise! The climax has already happened and we will be closer to the end soon. I could almost cry! As per usual, thank you for the overwhelming response I'm seeing according to views/visitors and lovely reviews (bundles of surprises for me)! Also, sorry if the chapters seem shorter, but it's difficult to write without it being all one massive chapter so I've split it up, trying to stay not too lengthy, but not too short. I also apologize if Neji seems like an ass, and I have nothing against him, but he was a good candidate to do this with! I promise he doesn't stay an ass forever!

Replies:

**Mitchell343e: **Gotta build up to the moment, you know? Haha, thanks for your comment!

**k0b3-b33f:** I'm so ecstatic to see that you're enjoying this fanfiction! I'm trying really hard to keep it realistic, but it's hard because I have to think of everyone's personality in a modern setting, where no massacres happen haha. I really appreciate you taking the time to review, I know exactly how you feel on never reviewing things!

**a Wiccan**: Oh my, thank you for your kind words! I'm so glad you enjoy it!

tofufuu


	11. Chapter 11

"Komorebi," Neji had summoned me to his office. I sat in front of him, tugging at my recently-short locks. He slid a newspaper article to me, and I read the title out loud.

"**Karuta Hachi, put into a rehabilitation centre; Uchiha gaining custody after a long, three-and-a-half-year battle!**" I smiled to myself. It worked! Finally! After six months of waiting for all the processing and multiple-rule-outs, Jun was finally at a home where he'd be happy! I'm sure Itachi is relieved, and ecstatic and-

"Are you satisfied?" The icicles Neji threw at me pierced through all the thought-bubbles I had.

I looked up at him, taking the article into my hands. "You'd be surprised at how content I feel. I've waited six months for this to happen, and I had even given up my job for this. Damn straight, I'm happy."

"Hn…" Neji smirked.

I got up from the (uncomfortable) chair. "I'll be in my office. I'll see you at the meeting in ten." Shuffling to my office, I closed the door behind me and rejoiced! I jumped up and down, and pumped my fists up. _This is all for you, you stupid dunce!_ I took a seat in my own office chair, swivelling to look at the magazine picture of me and Itachi. I placed the article beside it, securing it with a small piece of scotch tape.

The phone rang, and I answered it happily, "Hello, Hyuga-san's Assistant, how may I help you?"

"I'm assuming you read the article, Komorebi-san."

I grinned, "Pein-san! I did! It has been the highlight of my week, and I can't help but keep it on my desk as a trophy. I'm so excited!"

Pein chuckled. He was finally able to communicate with me, since we decided to stay strangers during all the trial periods. "Itachi, though stoic throughout the entire process, is also relieved, and he seems to be happy."

My grin faded into a smile, but still wide. "I'm glad."

There was some static between us, the both of us at a loss for words at how successful everything had become. "How are you feeling?"

"Very good…?" I was a little confused at his question.

"Will you go back to Itachi's company?"

Ah, so that's what he meant. "Duty calls, Pein-san. Maybe I will talk to you another day. Stay well." I didn't even get to hear the rest of his reply, before hanging up on him. It was rude of me, yes, but I cannot let him faze me. The façade I kept on every day at work was something I had to perfect. Yes, I had started at the top, but I had to gain everyone's trust individually. No one had trusted me since I was from a rival company.

Work was still work at the end of the day.

I had attended the meeting, almost dreading it, but then realizing that I would be giving a presentation today. I remember the first time I gave a meeting at this company- everyone was smacking their gum obnoxiously in my face with their bodies turned away from me. Some of them were even playing around on their phones and tablets, not even bothering to look me in the eye.

Well, that's until I smacked my folder on to the table, catching everyone's attention…

_"If you don't give a single shit about this company, I suggest you leave this room now." No one dared to get up. "Good, that means you all care right? Listen up, I'm not here to teach you how to do your job." I glared at someone who was still on their phone. I walked up to him, tapping him on the shoulder._

_No response._

_I snatched the phone out of his hands, putting it into my pocket. "Hey, what do you thin-"_

_I glared at him. "Stand up."_

_"What?"_

_"Go stand and face inwards to the corner. Since you don't like staring at the project too much, you may as well stare at something else while you listen." The guy looked at Neji, seeing if he'd do anything. Since Neji didn't say or motion anything, he got up and slid his way to the corner of the room, standing there._

_"Now that we're all listening, let's get back to what I was saying." I cleared my throat, starting the presentation. "Hyuga stocks have declined at a rate of thirty percent a year, an increasingly strong negative linear correlation. Do you know why?" I was met with silence again. I bashed the enter key on my keyboard, a graph coming up. "Because our offices have also decreased in labour work, and in research. Sixty-percent of the employees do not know how to do their current job, let alone know what the Hyuga's values are. Our money is taking a slump because people are being over-paid to do a job they know nothing about."_

_I've never been in a silent meeting before._

_"But before you all think you can give up on your career, I can help you. I will lead each and every one of you to a personal goal, and possibly direct you to different departments if need be." I handed everyone a list of all the departments at this company. "Perhaps something may interest you now. If we all start over and rebuild ourselves, we can also change the way this company is viewed."_

After that meeting, the Hyuga stocks had been rising at a slow rate. The company seemed much more lighter in mood and Neji couldn't say anything to me because I had repaired his company with the help of him, and head of the departments, over the last six months I was forced to work here. Now, everyone had listened to me (for the most part), or at least took my advice for consideration.

Today's meeting was no exception and went the same way as it did after the first meeting.

A knock on my door shook me from my mind. "Come in." A timid-looking girl peered into my door, her long blue hair falling off her shoulder. "Ah, Hinata, how may I help you?"

She walked in, closing the door behind her. She took a seat in front of me, being her usual fidgety-self. "I finalized the date for my wedding." Her voice was so quiet, like a mouse. But do not underestimate her in the presentation field! She does wonderful, and powerful, presentations!

I gasped, taking a hold of her hands. "That's wonderful! Please, tell me all the good details!"

Hinata smiled, her cheeks slightly flushing. She was the only true friend I had made at the company. No one acknowledged her, and they constantly bullied her at work, until I had asked her to do a presentation in place of me. "Naruto and I had decided to have a medium-sized wedding. We're doing it at a banquet hall, and I was wondering if you'd like to come?"

"Yes! I'd love to!" I squealed with excitement. Hinata had told me her love story, telling me how she had met the Naruto kid in college. She had a big crush on him in Freshman year, but hadn't had any guts to talk to him. They had ended up meeting in a tutorial in their Sophomore year and had hit it off from there. Now, they were finally getting married, and oh gosh, I could almost cry. I was definitely going to cry at her wedding.

Too bad I didn't have any love story of my own though. I had been thinking about Itachi every single damn day since I left his company. I had wanted to call him many times to make sure everything was okay between us. But nothing would ever stay the same again, since I had completely confessed my feelings, while breaking his heart at the same time.

_Because, I'm in love with my Boss._

The words rung so clearly in my head, and I almost buried myself alive that day. Well, burying myself under the covers of my cold bed, I guess.

I stared back up at my reflection. I was wearing an emerald-coloured dress, a red rose stuck somewhere into my short hair . I had looked like perfection, but I had also looked so sad. I would never get something like this because I could never marry Itachi at this point. Neji hadn't burned those stupid photos yet, and nor had he let up his threats every time I crossed his line.

He could be the sole reason I turned lesbian.

I got up with a sigh, and headed downstairs, Deidara nearly bumping into me if it weren't for the fact I held up my hands as he hit me. "Ow, why are you trying to touch me, un?"

I giggled, ruffling his bangs. "You almost rammed into me. You looking for me?"

Deidara eyed me, nodding his head in approval briefly, "Yes, I had wanted to make sure you look beautiful before you left, un."

"Thank you, but whether I looked like shit or not, you'd still have the same answer." I smiled, Deidara nodding at that as well.

"You're right, un." Deidara chuckled. "You look beautiful."

Well, his answer threw me off.

I blushed, hitting him in the chest. "Stop it. Don't make me cry before the wedding."

Deidara hugged me quickly, pinching my cheeks. My blush! "You're beautiful in every way and so selfless, I wish I was more like you sometimes, un. Go find some suitable man, and marry him. Then fuc-"

"AH, bye, Deidara!" I yelled, holding my ears as I shuffled into the limo that was called for me.

I arrived at a beautiful banquet hall, the entire place decorated with flowers, and… Is that uzumaki on the wall? Fishcakes? What the hell?

I spotted a familiar blonde at the reception table, chatting with all his colleagues. He spotted me, waving boisterously at me. "Komo-chan!"

I smiled, walking up to him. "Congratulations, Naruto. I didn't think you would wed before me." I snickered, Naruto pouting. "But really though, congrats. I'm more than happy for you."

He clapped me on the back, laughing. Ow, that hurt! "You don't have to be so sincere-tte bayo!" I was so close to killing Naruto because he broke my eardrums every time we had a conversation. "I appreciate it anyway, Komo-chan."

"Oi, idiot." I looked to my right, my eyes landing on a familiar trio. Said eyes widened. Said widened-eyes fell out of head. Dead.

Okay, jokes aside, I literally could have almost died.

Standing there was an unamused Sasuke, a blushing Sakura, and an emotionless Itachi. How I missed how expressive your face was!

"Sasuke! You made it-tte bayo!" Naruto exclaimed, rubbing the back of his head. Showed how much faith he had in his "best friend".

Sasuke snorted. "Tch, if I didn't, I would hear it for the rest of my life." Sakura smacked his chest, and although Sasuke didn't really flinch, I knew he did on the inside. Inside is what counts, right?

I smiled, and bowed. "Good afternoon Sasuke-san, Sakura-san, Uchiha-san."

"Komo-chan! Don't be so formal with me, we're friends after all." Sakura hugged me, and I used all the willpower I had to not sneak a glance at Itachi.

I chuckled, pulling away from the hug. "I haven't seen you in so long, I thought it'd be rude to not use honorifics anymore."

Sakura lightly punched me in the shoulder. "I'd welcome you with open arms in a split second." She led me away from the men, dragging me to another part of the hall. "So, tell me! How are you and Neji?"

"Me and Neji? Hah, I'd rather eat the cushions on my bed than date that pig."

Sakura's eyes widened. "You mean, it's a lie?"

"Well, of course. How could I ever love a pig?" I furrowed my eyebrows. "Who told you that I was with Neji anyway?"

"I whined to Sasuke about finding out why you left the company for a week!" Sakura pouted, puffing her cheeks out. Gosh, she could be so cute sometimes. "He finally had the guts to ask Itachi-san, and he told me that you were in love with Neji."

"He said that?" I chuckled, not sure how this man could be so dumb.

"So that's wrong?"

I shrugged. "I had told Itachi that I was leaving because I'm in love with my Boss."

Sakura's jaw dropped, her hands nearly shaking the living lights out of me. "You confessed?! Why did you make it so ambiguous?" Sakura then threw a smirk at me, "I knew it! You had the biggest thing for him the entire time you were working here!"

"I didn't think he'd take it the other way!" I exclaimed, heat rising to my cheeks. "It's not a thing, Sakura! I-I, I like him, okay!"

"Well," She sighed, pinching her nose-bridge, though the smile hadn't left her face yet. "He hasn't hired a single assistant since you left. He insisted on doing everyone on his own, even when I knew his workload was large, and he still even had to go to court."

That stupid dunce.

"Sakura!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing to Sasuke. "Your boyfriend needs to ask if you brought his-"

Sasuke clunked him on the head. "Shut up, you idiot!" Sasuke motioned for his girlfriend to head over there.

Sakura sighed. "It's like I'm babysitting five-year-olds. I'll catch you later, Komo!" We waved at each other, Sakura heading over to the two grown men. I went up to the wedding registry table, signing Hinata and Naruto's guestbook. The people who manned the table (Kiba from Public Relations and Shino from Customer Serivce), handed me my nametag, telling me to sit wherever I want in one of the assigned sections. I found a table with a giant Uzumaki fishcake in the middle of it, taking a seat. I really do hope that dinner is not ramen, though I wouldn't doubt that Naruto to pull something out of his ass…

"Is anybody sitting here?"

I looked up, staring right at Itachi. I can't handle you yet, I barely even want to face what I did yesterday! "Ah, no…" I think this was the first time I was actually kind of shy in front of him. Of course, I would be constantly embarrassed when we weren't talking about business, and he would tease me on those days, but… It's been six months since I've seen him…

It's like meeting him again for the first time. Except, minus the insults.

"I came here by myself anyway." I gave him a small smile, watching him take the seat beside me.

"Hn." I hate (love) when Itachi would do that. What was it supposed to mean? "Hyuga didn't bother to come to his cousin's wedding?"

I snorted. "Him? No way. He'd probably be too busy doing work to come." I rested my cheek on my palm. "Not that I'd bring him with me…" I mumbled.

"And why's that?" Shit, Itachi heard me?

"I'd rather bring Deidara. At least I like him, and he'd appreciate this type of event." My shyness was wearing off as soon as he mentioned Neji.

"So, you don't like your current Boss?"

I looked over at Itachi, the amusement in his eyes that I oh-so missed coming out to play. Can I marry you? "I never said anything about liking Neji." You can play it cool, Komo, you can do it! "Perhaps you have misinterpreted something someone had once said." I grinned, Itachi's lips twitching upward.

The lights of the banquet hall dimmed, signalling the start of the banquet. I hadn't even noticed people sat at our table, though it was hard to place who they were since their backs were facing me. Not that it mattered because the one person I cared most about was currently sitting beside me.

The banquet had gone swell; the games that the bridesmaid's played with Hinata and Naruto were absolutely hilarious! They made Naruto guess if the foot he was touching was Hinata's and I swore, he got kicked in the face more than once. Poor guy! Everyone was welcome to get desserts at a dessert buffet table, signalling the end of the banquet. I got up from my seat, tucking my chair in, looking over at Itachi who had also done the same. "Getting dessert?" I felt myself ask him. I really had no filter for my words; I had just wanted a reason to hear his voice.

"Not today. I have some work to do, so I'll be heading to the offices."

I looked at my watch. "It's almost ten, Itachi. Don't sound like Neji, please." I cocked my head to the side, a playful grin on my face.

He gave me a small smile. "If only I had an assistant, then I wouldn't have to spend so much time away from home."

I chuckled, "You just didn't bother to hire anybody else." We both walked out of the hall, side by side, our hands brushing against each other. Butterflies erupted from the pit of my stomach, making me feel light-headed. He really didn't have to do virtually anything to make me feel this way. "Say hi to Jun for me, will you?"

"He'd like that." Itachi smiled. "How are you getting home?"

"I asked Deidara to come by here after his work." I wish I had pockets to shove my hands into. "Perhaps I will see you another day, Itachi."

Itachi turned around to face me, the small smile still on his face. He leaned down, placing his lips briefly on my cheek in a chaste action. "Perhaps…" No matter what the intentions, it had started the rising blush from my heart all the way up my neck to my face. He turned to get into his car, the warmth of his lips still lingering behind on my cheek. I must've stood there looking like an idiot for god-knows-how-long, but a honking of a car broke me away.

I spotted Deidara's familiar beetle-car, hopping into it. "I saw that, un!" Wow, not even a hi?

I snorted, but couldn't prevent the heat from rising again. "Saw what?"

"That Uchiha kissing you on the cheek, un!" Deidara sped off into the night, being the lousy driver he was. "Don't pretend it wasn't anything!"

"I'm not! It was…" I sighed, relaxing into the seat. "I want to marry him, Deidara."

"So do it, un." Deidara said as if I was about to take a Driver's License test.

I pouted, "It's not like I can get up and run away with Itachi. I have that stupid Neji controlling everything I do."

Deidara nearly slammed his breaks, jerking the both of us forward. "You mean, he still has those stupid photos, un?"

"Deidara, you almost killed us!" I panted, a hand on my chest. "Yes, he still has those stupid photos! Now, drive!" He stepped on the gas pedal, zooming us on the road.

* * *

><p>I could hold off for another two months, can't I? My contract was almost done… I'm sure I could find some low-key job in an entirely new industry? I mean, working for the top two corporations in the city must look real nice on a resume, right?<p>

I sighed, walking into the office the next morning. "Morning, Komo-chan!" Kiba rubbed his backside on me in a playful manner.

I growled. "Go away, Kiba-san. I'm not in the mood for your stupid antics."

Kiba whimpered, moving away from my gloomy form. "Komo-chan is so scary today!"

I rolled my eyes, moving straight into Neji's office. The stupid guy had decided to call me in today, even though I requested a sick day. I knocked on his door, hearing a 'come-in'. And to this day, I still appreciate Itachi's murmurs more. I opened the door, walking in, Neji standing behind his desk, looking out at the skyline. It was unusual for me since he was always glued to his chair. I can't complain about that chair though; it is really comfy (not like the ones in front of his desk).

"What did you call me in for?" I asked, taking a seat in front of his desk. I crossed my legs and slumped back, not in the mood to look the part for my job.

"What do you plan to do in your future?" Neji asked me, though it felt like he was asking his window.

I snorted, "You called me in today to ask me this stupid question? Couldn't you have asked me over the phone?"

Neji sighed, rubbing his temples. "Just answer the question…"

It was the first time I saw him lose patience with me at the office. He was pretty lenient since I've done so much for his stupid corporation in such a short amount of time. "Well," I started off, coughing. "After I'm done with your shitty company, I'm hoping to move on to another industry and perhaps work for something entirely new. Who knows Neji, maybe I should find the cure to cancer." I joked, laughing a little at it.

"Do you think you could find the cure for cancer, if given the resources?"

Whoa, okay, I wasn't expecting that. "W-Well, chemistry, as you know, was the only science I preferred, so I'd need a physicist, like yourself, and a biologist with me so we can craft together…" My answer must've sounded stupid. Neji probably thought I was spouting shit out of my ass.

Neji turned around to look at me, the both of us staring at each other.  
>The most unexpected thing to happen right there.<br>Neji _smiled_ at me.

What? Did I do something funny? He solemnly smiled, especially at work. Heck, I could probably count all the times he smiled while we were together with one hand.

"Neji…? Are you okay?" I furrowed my eyebows, standing up slowly from my chair.

"I'm fine." He turned around, back to his girlfriend (aka the window), his voice going back to monotonously-toned. "You're dismissed."

I pursed my lips and sat back down, staring at the back of Neji's head. "You obviously called me here for a reason, especially on my day off. I won't leave till you make this worth it."

"I said, you are dismissed." Neji sighed once more.

"I don't get it; I answered your question, so you can answer mine, right?"

Neji took a seat in his (comfy-ass) chair. "All I wanted to do was ask you a question."

I could feel my blood boil! I don't believe that for one damn second! "That's bullshit. You could've asked me over the phone when you called, but you obviously had intended for us to talk for a longer period of time."

"I know you're discontented with me, but please, trust me that I have a reason for it."

I scowled, "Oh really? Because I can't think of any possible reason other than you being selfish, and manipulative." A flash of hurt crossed his eyes, but I won't let it get to me. "You took me away from the job I loved the most, with the people I loved the most, and have me sit in your office like a pretty bird locked up in a cage." I knew my words were like knives against his beating heart. "However, I'm not the type to hold grudges, so if there is something wrong, I'll still help you right now because I know there's a reason you told me to come in today."

"I have cancer."

The words slowly sunk into my mind, my eyes slowly meeting his. "W-What?" My voice came out like a whisper.

"I only have a month to live, Komo."

* * *

><p>AN:

Sorry for the update being late! I had a midterm yesterday so I was burnt out from all the studying. I hope this chapter made up for it because we got to see our favourite (flirty!) Uchiha!

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**If I Can Be:** It was sad, wasn't it? It's okay, things will get better from here on out!

**Guest: **Hello again! Thank you for your kind words, they motivate me a lot!

**Mitchell343e**: Twists and turns are the best to push the plot deeper, haha! Thank you for your comments!


	12. Chapter 12

I had went home crying after Neji dismissed me. The news was dull, but pierced through me to my bones. I have never hated Neji, even though he never treated me that great, he was still decent during our relationship. Don't get me wrong, I disliked him for the fact he pulled me away from Itachi and my job, and also put me in a situation where a man could have assaulted me further. I don't think I could forgive him for those two things, but it felt like they were puzzle pieces to something he was brewing up. His words rung through my head the entire night I was trying to rest.

_'I have only one month left, Komo._  
><em>…only one month…'<em>

I had went into the office in a sluggish movement, not sure how I'd face Neji for the rest of the month. It's hard to think that in a month, he'd be gone…

I knocked on his door, Neji telling me to come in. "Good morning." I greeted quietly.

He looked up from his work, and unblinkingly stared at me. "I almost thought you wouldn't show up today." Neji went back to his papers as I took a seat down.

I fidgeted in my seat, "I feel awful." I stared at his bobbing head while he wrote away, realizing that he was indeed sicker than when I had first encountered him at Kisame's party six months ago. His hair wasn't as shiny, nor as full. His skin was paler and more deathly than usual. His eyes had no more life in them, though he didn't have life in them either during our college years. His cheeks have also slightly hollowed, but I thought it was because he was over-working himself.

Neji raised an eyebrow at me. "Why?"

"It's still sinking in, and," I bit my lip, trying convince myself that I couldn't cry anymore. "I don't know, it feels surreal. How can you be so calm about it?"

Neji shrugged. "I've come to accept it's my fate now, and that there's nothing else I can do."

The toll of him saying that to me for years hit me right then. "Don't give me that!" I stood up abruptly, slamming my hands on his desk. The chair that I was previously sitting on was rocking back in forth from my sudden movement. "You do care! You do! You're leaving behind your hard work and all the people you've met in your life!" The tears that I didn't want to shed had already spilled out of my eyes, running down my cheeks in gentle streams. "What the hell are you doing at your desk? Don't you have people or places to say goodbye to?"

Neji stared up at me, and it was the very first time I've seen him shocked and surprised. His mouth was slightly open and his eyes widened, pen in his hand becoming loose. I sobbed quietly, retreating my hands back to my sides, looking down at my feet as I felt the droplets of tears fall on to my shoes. I sniffled loudly, trying to understand him so desperately.

"No one knows I'm leaving, but you."

"H-How can you d-do t-this?" I was hiccupping by now, getting too emotional. "Y-You're n-not going to s-say goodbye to H-Hinata-chan? O-Or what a-about Lee, o-or Tenten? W-What about H-Hanabi?"

"I had planned on going quietly, if that's what you're asking."

I couldn't let him see me more upset than I already was. I turned around and made it for the door, rushing through the offices, bumping into people who dare didn't say a word once they saw my red and swollen face. Really, crying was one of my prettier features (joking).

I wasn't paying attention to where I was walking), as I tried to wipe the tears away from my face. I bumped into someone, trying to side-step them and move on towards the elevator. Until I heard him call my name, "Komo?" I looked up, staring up at Itachi. His eyebrows were furrowed together, a frown on his face.

I bit my lip, and I could already feel a bruise forming on it. "I-I'm sorry, Itachi, b-but I-I need to g-go h-home now." I didn't bother to wait for his response, rushing home by feet.

I got home and slammed the door to my apartment, sinking down to the floor, completely losing it. I let the tears flow freely and all the emotions that I kept locked in me for most of my life have resurfaced. Feelings of abandonment… A crying younger version of me left in the dark with nothing but my own voice to guide myself kept playing behind my eyelids over, and over again. It was like a black hole had appeared before me and decided to suck all things good from me. My heart ached, and my head was throbbing. Never in my life have I felt so weak, and so low…

I guess I had drifted off, my eyes fluttering open as the sunset had danced on my eyes. I got up, feeling groggy and heavy, though that was just probably the remnants of the black hole. If I was already like this, how would I feel when he was really gone? I rubbed my eyes, taking a seat on the couch, head resting to look up at the ceiling. I was about to fall back asleep when there was a knock at my door.

I stood up and dragged my feet to the door. I opened it, revealing a chatty Deidara, completely oblivious to everything that was going on. "Komo, did you forget today was movie day? I was wai-" He stopped his speech, looking fully at me, his eyes widening. "Komo?! What's wrong?"

"Deidara…" I sounded so weak, my voice so hoarse.

Deidara slid inside, taking me to the couch. "Are you hurt? Do we need to go to the hospital?"

I shook my head. "I just had an anxiety attack." He stared at me, eyebrows furrowed.

"I don't believe that."

"It's true." I looked up at him, giving him a small smile. "There was nothing else I could do but panic when I learned that Neji is going to die at the end of the month."

"What?!"

I nodded slowly, coming closer to the terms that he wouldn't be here. "I, I don't hate him. Never did, though he did do some awful things to me. I've never wished death upon him, and I don't think I could. Everybody deserves to live until they've done something unforgiveable."

"He's done awful things to you! He even has pictures of you with that guy, un!" Deidara exclaimed, grabbing my shoulders. "Why do you still care for him? Any normal human being wouldn't even put you in that position in the first place, un!"

I couldn't look at Deidara in the eyes. "Deidara, I always say you are my family. I would put you as my brother if they would allow it." I slowly put my hands on top of his, his hands much warmer than mine. "Though me and Neji are no longer together, he was still someone I spent time with. I've learned a lot from him too. Wouldn't it be hard to accept that someone you're with every day will no longer be with you anymore?" I placed his hands into my lap. "I can't hold grudges, you know that. You might not approve of me treating Neji well, but I have to for this month because he doesn't deserve to die in pitch black."

* * *

><p>I went into the Hyuga Corp. offices the next morning, a big smile on my face. I greeted everyone I met eyes with, and even that stupid Kiba bastard that wouldn't stop rubbing his ass on me. "Komo-chan! You're so different today! Do you wanna go on a da-" I stopped his face mere inches away from mine, scowling a little.<p>

"I'm nice today, but don't push it."

I knocked on the door to Neji's office, hearing his familiar voice on the other side. I opened the door and stepped in, chin out and back straight. "Good morning, Neji-san."

He looked up from his paper, slightly surprised. "Komorebi…"

"I'll be working on paperwork most of today, however, I wanted to know if there was anything you wanted me to do specifically." I spoke strongly, trying to keep my voice firm and audible. I will not show weakness in front of him again, no, I'd be strong for him just this once.

Neji paused his work, blinking at me. "We have a meeting at 10 today."

"Okay, I will prepare for that too."

"Have lunch with me today. I have something I want to talk to you about." Neji looked back down at his work, scribbling on it, reminding me of Itachi briefly. Itachi… I wonder what he thought of when he saw me yesterday.

"Let me know if you need anything else till then." I bowed, heading to my office. I sat down at my desk, getting straight to work and drowning myself in it. It was hard being the only one who knew of Neji's ending, but life goes on and I'd have to work on that.

At the presentation, I briefed the head council about any changes in the company. "Our investments have been rising at a steady, linear rate. We've also been receiving positive feedback from all of the investments, with a fresh list of candidates ready to go. As usual, I will let the project leader Hinata-san lead those candidates with the help of Kiba-san and Shino-san since they are doing very well." The three of them nodded. "Any questions or concerns?"

The meeting room was silent, the intentions pretty clear. Neji stood up though, causing everyone to look at him. "I need to talk with a select few of you. The rest of you are dismissed." Everyone cleared out of the room except for Hanabi, Hinata, Kiba, Shino, Tenten, and Lee. The five of them looked confused, exchanging glances with each other.

"Did we do something wrong?" Tenten furrowed her eyebrows, a hand going to her chin.

"No, quite the opposite. Everyone has been doing well." Neji took a seat again, both of his hands going underneath his chin. "It's regarding this month and what will happen by the end of it."

I gulped, my palms getting sweaty. He really was going to announce it!

The room fell silent, everyone waiting for what was to come. Neji sighed, looking down at the table. "I will no longer be here at the end of the month."

Lee widened his eyes. "Where are you going, Neji? Has the fountain of youth not allowed you to invite us all?" I smacked my forehead with my palm, trying to recover from it.

"Lee, it's not something I can invite you all to do, even if I were given the chance." Neji had a dull smile on his face. "Let's be honest, I don't think you'd want to be invited to death."

Everyone's faces immediately turned to shock.

"I'm in my last moments before death will consume me. I started chemo for a little bit to prolong it, but I've decided to just go through with it." Neji's voice was quiet. Hinata and Hanabi had hands over their mouths, mirroring each other. Lee tensed up and I could see that Tenten had tears welling up in her eyes.

"Why didn't you tell us sooner?" Kiba ran a frustrated hand through his messy mop. "Giving only a month's notice… Neji, what the hell were you thinking?"

"I wasn't, I'm sorry."

I took a seat at the table, placing all the folders down in front of me in a neat pile, my legs growing tired from standing. "What's going to happen to this company?" I broke the brief silence, everyone looking up to glance at Neji.

"I've already decided, which was what I wanted to discuss before we dismiss this meeting." He had everyone's attention now. "Hinata will move to my place and Hanabi will take hers." Hinata's face grew pink and I knew what she was probably thinking. But Neji and I were both confident she could do this. "Everyone else is free to either stay or move on as this company will go through restructuring with my passing, with Hinata's notice of course." Neji's words were final, everyone nodding. "The meeting is dismissed. Everything we've talked about today does not leave this room."

We all got up, putting our papers away. The news was still sinking in, and it would take time, just like how it did for me. It surprised me that all of them seem so calm about the news, but inside, they were probably like me- panicking. At the end of the day, Neji was firm and possibly (a little) stubborn, so what he said, goes.

"Komorebi, lunch." Neji's voice tore me away from my thoughts. I nodded and followed him outside.

Neji brought me to a simple restaurant, something I could compare to when I would eat with Itachi every day. Seriously, everything was a parallel, and both of them were pretty much foils to each other. I sat down and we ordered, Neji having a cat catch his tongue.

"What did you want to talk about? It's rare to see you invite me to lunch." I smiled a little, trying to open up more.

"There's some things I wanted to talk to you privately about."

"About what?"

Neji looked out the window, watching the cars drive by slowly. "Everything that happened since we've met each other till now." I waited for him to continue, his eyes following the vehicles outside. "I'll start with meeting you," I leaned forward, resting my elbow on top of the table, my head in my palm. "You were the only one who dared to defy me, along with other powerful figures at the school we both attended. I thought you were a stupid girl who couldn't put her money where her mouth was. Slowly, however, after all your pestering, I had let you inside my life. We didn't spend much time, of course, but I grew soft.

"I didn't want that, so I distanced myself away. Perhaps you have misunderstood me, and I could understand that. Please know that my intentions never were to hurt you. I've done a lot of regrettable things in the past, including what happened at the restaurant that night. When I said I'd be back in thirty minutes, I really meant five. I was going to come back and get you soon, knowing that he'd be no match for you while he was drunk.

"I saw you left with Itachi, however, and anger surfaced under my skin. Perhaps it was jealousy, but I told myself I shouldn't feel these things. It was stupid really, we were no longer together, and I knew that you would find someone more worthy of your affections. So I decided to cover my feelings up with aloofness, and it unfortunately was directed all at you. I'm sorry, for everything, really."

Neji finally turned to me, but unable to meet my eyes. "It's okay, Neji." I smiled a little at him. "Everything is done now, we can both look past it. I don't want you to go with regrets nor sadness. I want you to go as if you've lived your life to the fullest."

"It just seems like I've been too late with everything. I didn't know what I had till it was gone." Neji looked up, giving me a small smile. "I can set things straight from now on."

Everything definitely did feel right again. I grinned at him, Neji looking content with me. Everything really did feel okay-

"Ah!" Neji held his head, slumping forward in his chair.

"Neji!" I rushed to his side, trying to gain his attention. "Look at me! Let's take you to the hospital right now!"

* * *

><p>We were rushed to the ER, Neji immediately being examined upon arrival. I sat at the waiting room, arms and legs crossed over each other. I bit my lip, hoping Neji's time wasn't here so early. He had finally owned up to what I assumed was one of his biggest regrets in his life- treating me terribly.<p>

"Nee-san!" I looked up, smiling at the bouncing child. "What are you doing here? Do you have a booboo?" Jun took my arm, looking underneath it, as if he was examining a wound on my tummy.

I ruffled his hair, picking him up and squeezing him tight. "Jun-kun! I missed you so much!" I rubbed my cheek on him, the kid trying to get out of my arms like a struggling cat. I put him back down, crouching down to look into his eyes. "I'm okay, but my friend is not, so I took him to go see Sensei." I gave him a close-mouthed smile.

"Will he be okay?" Jun's eyes widened.

"He'll be okay." I gently pinched his cheek. "Where's Itachi?"

"There you are, Jun, don't run awa-" Itachi rounded the corner, eyes looking at me. Gosh, all I needed was one look and I'm gone. "Komo…"

"Nii-san! I saw Komo walk by the room while Tsunade-sensei was talking to me, so I decided to go find her afterwards!" Jun bounded up to Itachi, clinging on to his hand.

"Hello, Itachi." I smiled, Itachi approaching me. "Are you here with Jun?"

"Ah, yeah. He's here for counselling." He picked up Jun, the kid resting his head on Itachi's shoulder. "What about you?"

"I came here with Neji."

Itachi rose that damn eyebrow that I missed so much. "Is this part of your duties too?"

"No!" I felt my face heat up, though I don't know why. "He's, um, sick." I hope he got my point.

"Sick…"

"Terminally ill." I frowned a little, Itachi's gaze on my face. "I'm waiting for him right now, but I haven't called anyone else to come yet." My eyes met with Itachi's and a spark ignited between us. Perhaps this wasn't the best place to gather those butterflies and flowers together in the pit of my stomach, and it definitely wasn't the best situation, as Neji was in an exam and Jun was in his arms. But he drew me in, something so strong like a magnet the size of the Earth.

"Do you want me to wait with you?" Please do…

I shook my head, waving my hands. "No way, not with Jun in your arms. I'm sure he'd be much more comfortable in a bed or a car seat." I smiled a little, staring at the kid.

"I can call his nanny to pick him up. I don't want you to wait alone at a hospital." Itachi's voice was so soft, comfortably wrapping around my ears.

"If you insist," I grinned. "I know I'm hard to resist."

The Nanny (her name was Konan) had come to pick up Jun fifteen minutes later. Thankfully, Jun was a heavy sleeper and didn't complain much as he was being transferred to another pair of arms. Itachi had gotten me a cup of coffee and a sandwich, somehow knowing I didn't get to eat my lunch today.

Oh my gosh, now it's just the both of us alone…

"How have you been?" I started a conversation with him, swallowing my first bite of the sandwich. When did turkey club taste so good?

"The same. Of course, still adjusting a little to Jun being permanently with me." Itachi chuckled softly, staring down at his cup of coffee. "Sometimes I feel like Hachi will arrive to take him back with her any moment."

"Not for at least another ten years." I smiled. "I'm happy for you, now that Jun is by your side."

Itachi flicked my forehead. "I'm missing one more person by my side."

"Huh?" I almost dropped my sandwich, trying to massage the sore spot on the centre of my forehead. "What do you mean? You have Jun and that's enough for you, right?" I cocked my head to the side, staring at him.

"…Are you sure your school didn't have a fluke system?"

I furrowed my eyebrows, confused on why he brought up my school. Wait… "Hey! I'm not stupid! I'm just… You always talk in riddles, you know that?" I pouted, puffing out my cheeks. "I'm smart, but I don't crack codes for a living."

"You have a sesame stuck on your cheek." Itachi chuckled, trying to hold in his bigger laugh.

"Take it off!" I laughed while lightly smacking him in the arm.

He leaned forward, the smile disappearing, his lips parting. Our faces were getting closer, so I backed my face up a little, but Itachi held my chin down firmly. "Don't move…" His voice was breathy and husky, and I could feel his breath on my lips. I felt the familiar heat rise up to my cheeks, knowing what was completely coming. He moved his other hand to touch my cheek gently, brushing, what I believed was, the sesame seed away. Both his hands didn't budge, and I was forced to look into his dark eyes.

"Itachi…?" I whispered.

He moved away, letting go of my chin. I had almost felt disappointed, but I realized my predicament- at a hospital with my dying Boss to make sure he was okay. Don't think this would be the right time to be kissing away…

But I yearned for him so much.

"Sorry." He mumbled and I think I could hear his confidence shatter a little. Like a dry wall peeling, perhaps.

The light above the examination room turned off, a doctor coming out. " Hyuga-san's family?"

"Ah, I'm his personal assistant, the one who brought him in." I stood up. "I haven't contacted his family yet, I apologize."

The doctor scooted his eyes at Itachi, but went straight back to me. "That's fine. I will brief you quickly on Hyuga-san's condition and then you may see him." I nodded, the doctor clearing his throat. "As you know, Hyuga-san is being affected by the cancer spreading throughout his body. He had informed me a few moments ago that he decided to not go with the chemotherapy any longer since he did not wish to prolong his death, in exchange for pain." The doctor showed me a few quick diagrams that were in his folder. "The cancer is spreading quite rapidly, but we will not do anything to comply with Hyuga-san's wishes. His departure may be earlier than expected."

"Is he okay right now?" I furrowed my eyebrows, finding it hard to accept his facts.

The doctor nodded, though it was hesitant. "As okay as his condition could be. He'll have to be in a wheelchair from now on to not exert himself. I must go now, however, please feel free to contact me with any other questions."

I bowed, murmuring my thanks, the doctor walking down the hall. I looked over at Itachi, hands in his pant pockets. "Shall I take my leave?"

"I would want you to stay, but I guess that isn't an option, huh." I gave him a small closed-mouth smile.

"I wish to see you again, soon."

"You will, you can't escape me, even if you wanted to, Itachi." I earned a chuckle from him. But what I did next even surprised myself. I tippy-toed and pecked him softly on the cheek, hands ghosting over his cheek. "Go home to Jun now." I smiled, one last time, disappearing behind the door to Neji's room, not being able to catch his reaction.

I walked into the room, spotting Neji lying in bed. "Neji…" I called out softly. He looked over at me, his hair spread across his pillow like ebony waves, his skin rivalling the whiteness of his room and his bed sheets. "How are you feeling?"

"Better now… They gave me pain killers, so it's a little hard to make sense of right now."

"Morphine, huh." I chuckled, taking a seat next to him in bed. "Sensei told me you'd be in a wheelchair from now on…"

"He also told me that eventually I'd need to be using a breathing-tube connected to oxygen tanks and be in bed later on." Neji looked away from me, looking out to the window.

"I haven't called Hinata and Hanabi yet. I'll let them take you home, Neji." I got up, gently squeezing Neji's hand to get his attention.

"Thank you, Komorebi."

* * *

><p>Neji only had one more week left, and yet I have never felt so calm in my life. Maybe it was because he also felt calm, and it probably rubbed off on me. Even the office was quiet, and it suddenly reminded me that this was equivalent to the calm before the storm. I would have no idea what I'd do after he left this world… Would I stay or would I leave and go back to Itachi? I didn't necessarily feel obliged to stay with the Hyuga Investors Corp., but it just felt indecent to leave right away, especially when their company would be restructuring a little. I guess I'll discuss it with him today.<p>

I was currently on my way to visit Neji at his home. Since he was entering his final moments, the doctors have restricted him to resting at home in bed. Hinata had already started to ease herself into his office, though I'm sure it hurt her to think about taking over her cousin's job, basing it off the way she looks painfully at his chair, running her fingers over the edge of his dust-free desk.

I was let into the house by a maid, and she led me through a series of corridors to Neji's room. I heard the beeping of Neji's heart monitor, but also muffled voices behind his closed doors. My grip on the bouquet of flowers I got him tightened, suddenly feeling quite nervous. The maid opened the door, allowing me through.

I looked up and my heart caught in my throat. I was staring back at two vaguely familiar people, a man and a woman probably in their mid-fifties. The man had scruffy gray-brown hair, brown-rimmed glasses hiding his hazel eyes, and a graying mustache above his upper lip. The woman had a shoulder-length hair cut, her brown hair also graying as well. Both of them had aged over time, but I could recognize them from eons away if I could.

"Komorebi…" It was her voice, it was definitely her.

I dropped the bouquet of flowers, my mouth slightly open. "Mama, Papa…?"

* * *

><p>AN:

Plot-twists for days! We are so near to the end, my fellow readers! I actually have a new storyline brewing up, set in the Naruto world (no alternate universes!), but I will see when I start that up. Might be a little while before I finish that one, but I'll keep you guys updated on what I'm thinking. I've also been trying to desperately catch up on Naruto (at least refresh myself a little), so that the new storyline flows well and doesn't seem Mary-sue at all. I really hope that my characters don't come off that way, but we all love a little romanticism in our lives, so I always keep the reader (or the main character) hoping.

You are all my motivation, so thank you for giving my story a chance!

Replies:

**Mitchell343e**: Don't cry! Ahaha, that was not my intention! I think you may be on to something!

**a Wiccan**: It's starting to sound like an Asian drama, isn't it? This stuff always happens in them!

**Guest:** Aww, that's great! I'm so glad that you both like it!

**searbear17: **Oh wow, thank you so much for your comments! I'm so glad that Komo's personality is showing through, it really makes me happy. I had different plans for Deidara originally, but I thought it'd be too much if he became more than a supportive character, though that's what he really is in this story. Even I get flustered when I write those parts because imagining it is really such a dream. Thank _you_ for reading this!


	13. Chapter 13

I was seated in front of two perfect strangers, but my heart already knew who they were. Neji had fallen asleep, the sound of his breathing the only thing breaking the dead-silence.

"Komorebi, how have you been?" The woman asked. I have yet to call her my Mama fully in my mind.

I smiled a little. "Well, I suppose. I'm still going through a tough time, trying to be calm about Neji's illness." I took a sip from my cup of tea, provided by the maid who had let me into this room. "And you two?"

"Your m- Kimi, and I, own a Japanese sweets shop on the outskirts of the city. Business has been going well, but we took the time off today to, well-" The man scratched his head. "Neji-san had contacted us through a series of means. It took him six months to reach us without any legality issues, and he had informed us that you were working alongside with him."

I looked over at Neji's bed. He did this?

"Well, Neji-san, and another young gentleman, Kenji." Kimi (Mama?) said, Kenji (Papa?) clasping a hand over her own. "Apparently the both of them had work together to gain the same ultimate goal- to bring us together at least once."

"Another young gentleman?"

Kimi nodded. "I believe he's the CEO of Uchiha Investors Corp."

Kenji chuckled softly, scratching the top of his head. "It was quite the surprise to learn that two top companies were looking for us. At first I thought we had something of theirs, but we learned quickly what it was about."

Itachi and Neji?

"It's just as a surprise to me as it is to you." I looked over to Neji's heart monitor, the beeping steady. "I never envisioned a meeting like this in my entire life. I was saving up money to do it, but it never came around."

Kimi and Kenji stared at me, Kimi's eyes welling up. "We're so sorry for letting you go, and I had hoped that you never held a grudge against us for it…"

I shook my head. "No. Though I was upset when it first had happened, I grew up to realize that you were trying to do this for me at the end. I guess I was more upset that you hadn't come pick me up when you were supposed to be ready." I chuckled a little. "I learned more from being unsheltered, so I guess I can thank you for that."

The tears from Kimi's eyes were released, streams coming down, reminding me of my own tears. These two people were similar in the way we looked, and yet they felt quite distant at the moment. "Thank you…" Kenji bowed his head.

"Let's meet again, another day, when times are not so rough." I smiled, standing up, the both of them getting up as well. Kenji had his arms around Kimi, and a flash of me and Itachi passed through my mind. Will I be like that when I get older?

"I'll look forward to the day we can be a family again, if that's possible." Kenji smiled, his crow's feet apparent even under his glasses.

I smiled, taking each of their hands. "I think it is."

* * *

><p>On the thirtieth day of the eighth month, Hyuga Neji passed away at 11:58 p.m. He had went to bed, and his dreams had consumed him, never having the ability to wake up again. Perhaps he had a sweet dream, but I guess none of us will ever know. Not even me.<p>

I was given a day-off, the day after his death. I woke up in the morning, the news sinking into my bones, making them feel heavy. Everything of mine felt sluggish, and yet everything was moving by me rapidly, and I was the only one moving at a normal pace. Cars passed by my window, the wind swayed the trees and the mocking sound of the ticking second-hand on my clock were the only reassurances to me that time indeed had passed. I didn't wake up crying like I thought I would, but I couldn't help but feel slightly lost and maybe a little empty.

Hinata had come by in the afternoon, all dressed in black, handing me an orange envelope. She told me that there were some cards and paperwork regarding the office, saying it was required for me to read it over before any final decisions were made. She left afterwards, but in those few moments, I knew what she was feeling because the dark circles under her eyes, or even the puffiness of them could not lie to me.

I sat on my couch, opening the envelope, dumping the contents out on to the coffee table. There were many 'Sorry for your loss' cards from people around the office, a stapled package of papers to be read, and a white envelope with the Hyuga logo on it.

I picked it up and opened it, taking out a hand-written letter by Neji himself. That sneaky bastard.

_Komorebi,_

_When you read this, I would have already left the world, and though I won't ever know if you're sad or calm about my parting, I had always hoped that either way, no harsh feelings were left between us. You've taught me much about myself over the last few months, but even when we were together, so I would like to thank you formally again. I also want to apologize one last time for all the regretful things I have done to you, and I was relieved to know that you had forgiven me. I'm sorry, and I thank you._

_Meeting you was perhaps the most enlightening thing in my life. You had made me realized that I was living, and not some drone to complete his societal duties. Thank you. You taught me that fate was not something to let control your life, but just as a guidance for future mistakes. Thank you. You taught me that love was also possible, and a medication for the roughest times. Thank you as well._

_I'm sure you had a quaint talk with your parents. Itachi and I had put our differences aside, and I had to seek his legal help to find your parents. We had decided to let them meet you at my compound because you often seek me during my time of need. Though, if I knew you well, I know you'd rather meet them with Itachi. Consider it as our gift from the both of us for different reasons._

_With my parting, I have left you what I owe you in monetary value. I knew that if I had given it to you straight, you would decline, so I decided to put it in my will so you can choose to do something with it, without declining it at first glance._

_Live fully, just like how you've taught me._  
><em>Neji<em>

Wet dots appeared on the paper, and I hadn't realized I've been crying till I couldn't read his letter anymore through the blurriness. That stupid bastard… He's already apologized to me so many times, and I couldn't believe he was still in love with me.

"_B__aka…_"

I couldn't attend Neji's wake, but I did go to his funeral. I stared at Neji's portrait, remembering his long, brown hair that hung over his shoulders like a dark curtain, and his lavender-tinted eyes which were always calculating away. We were in the midst of offering him incense, and then Neji would be offered a new name before he gets cremated.

They had announced his new name, however, I couldn't quite catch it, and it was too hard for me to read. They often used characters that were too old to be read nowadays. He'll still be Neji in my heart anyway. It was my turn to say my final goodbye to my boss and my friend.

I stared down at him, the fellow dressed in one of his expensive suits, his hair braided nicely, and was pulled away from his face. They also put light makeup on him, making him look almost as if he was peacefully sleeping his worries away. "Neji," I started quietly, everyone listening into my words for him. "You have done well. Don't worry anymore, you can be free now. I know you don't like flowers much, but I thought that it'd be nice to smell them, so you don't forget the beauty of the world." I placed a yellow rose beside his head. "Farewell, my friend." I wiped a lone tear away, not knowing it had fallen.

Everyone had cycled around to say their goodbyes. The casket closed and he was off to be cremated. People were welcome to stay or leave if they were busy. I would have stayed, but I had to do some final paperwork regarding his will and the money he was leaving behind for me. I exited the building, big drops of rain hitting the tops of my cheeks. I blinked, my hair starting to get soaked. The rain felt kind of nice, after all, it's still the summer and things haven't cooled down yet. Perhaps this was the way the sky would mourn with us.

* * *

><p>I wanted to eat something hot, so I decided to visit the nice couple who owned Heiwa near my house. I walked in, the female owner walking up to me. "Komorebi-chan, it's been a while since I last saw you!" As usual, her greeting was warming to my heart.<p>

I nodded, giving her a small hug. "I've been busy." She led me to a table, seating me comfortably next to the window, even though there were many seats available to choose from, she knew this was my favourite. "How have you been?"

"Ah, same old, Komo-chan. I'm in my older years now, and not much changes with me." She gave me a wide grin, her eyes disappearing behind her round, rosy cheeks. "Your boyfriend however, has become a regular, though I never see you guys come in together anymore…"

"You're mistaken, Auntie!" I exclaimed, red rising to my cheeks, rivalling hers. "He's not my boyfriend…" I laughed sheepishly, scratching my chin with my index finger.

"There's no lying for me, young Missy! I know young love when I see it." She winked. "I'll let you decide what you want."

I stared down at the menu, taking my sweet time choosing what I wanted to eat. "Is this seat taken?" I looked up from my menu, making eye contact with familiar glossy, black pools. My heart fluttered in my chest, but I pressed it down with a smile.

"Itachi…" Why was I such a puddle when I was with him?!

He took a seat in front of me, and I admired him really quickly, taking in his scent and just, ugh, looking into his long eyelashes made me want to punch him in the mouth. He was everything I wanted and more. "Long time no see, Komo." Oh shit, was I staring?

"Ah, yeah." I smiled sheepishly. "Let me guess what you're getting," Itachi stayed quiet, waiting for me to continue. "You're going to get their house seaweed onigiri, with marinated steamed cabbage on the inside."

Itachi chuckled, nodding. "I think you're the only person I know who can memorize a menu while being so confident about it."

"Actually, I only memorized your order." I blinked. "It's the only thing you get here."

"I almost feel flattered." Itachi teased, making my heart skip a beat.

"A-Almost? That's cold." I pouted, Auntie coming back to take our orders.

"Komo-chan! You don't have to lie about seeing him!" She laughed, smacking me on my shoulder. Geez, for someone on the older side, she had so much strength! "Auntie knows that you're head over heels for him!"

"Is this true, Komo?" I looked over to Itachi, mouth agape, staring at his twinkling eyes. He looked quite pleased with this situation… I really didn't know what to say.

"Well, of course it's true! She's speechless every time you're with her, Uchiha-san. When I first met Komo-chan, she didn't like talking to anyone and only came with her blonde-haired friend," Auntie laughed, clasping her hands together. "But when I saw her walk in with you on that fine day, I knew that she had found love!" She looked like she was enjoying her fantasy more than I was.

"Auntie, please, I'm hungry!" I complained, trying to usher her to the kitchen.

She laughed, taking the menu from my hand. "Alright, I'll let you two lovebirds alone. I'll be back with your food later." She winked at me, though it looked like she was blinking more than winking.

We finished our meal, but I was too embarrassed to actually make any real conversation. We were currently walking along the street, heading towards the harbour to look out into the ocean. There weren't too many ships or yachts lined up to depart, but there were at least one or two. The sun was setting lazily beyond the horizon, casting a grapefruit-looking reflection in the sea.

I couldn't even look at Itachi right now. Why did he have to do this to me? Why did Auntie have to do this to me?! It was like being embarrassed by a Mom over and over again, and to top it off, it was right in front of your crush too! Well, I don't think crush is the appropriate word for him, since I'm 23 now, but… Who am I kidding? I already confessed to him, didn't I? He's not that stupid to not get what I meant.

"Komo?" I looked up, snapping out of my thoughts. "It's okay if she's hit the nail on the head with everything."

"W-What? Itachi, no, I-um-" Oh gosh, I was jumbling my speech. "It's not that, I mean, it'd be a lie to say I didn't feel anything for you, in fact, I think it's quite the opposite, and I'm not sure, but when I talk to you, I just turn into a giant m-"

"Go out with me, Komo." I froze, looking up at Itachi, the said man looking at me from beneath those thick eyelashes. "Stay by my side from now on." I have never seen Itachi so vulnerable, his eyes soft with plead, and his head slightly looking downwards. "It's been a while since I've expressed emotions like these, forgive me if I seem so forceful…"

"Itachi, you are human in every single way and form. There's no need to apologize for when your emotions take over." I smiled softly, brushing a stray hair from his face. "After all, I'd much rather be with a human than a robot, you stupid dunce." I nibbled on my lip, unsure if what I said was right at all.

Itachi brushed his fingers along my hand, sending electric shocks down my arm and into my heart. He wrapped his hand gentle around me, tugging on it while leaning forward, his lips pressing a feather-light kiss on to my own lips. My breath hitched in my throat, and with my other hand, I clung on to his blazer, Itachi pulling me in closer to his body. We both pulled our faces away after what felt like an eternity, catching our breaths.

"I'm pretty sure you're supposed to take me out on a date before you kiss me, Itachi."

* * *

><p>I heard a knock on my door. "Come in." I murmured, the door opening and closing. I looked up, putting my pen down. "What's up, Sakura?"<p>

"I just wanted to come have a small chat with you if you're not too busy." She plopped down into a chair in front of me, resting her palm on top of her hand.

I stared at it, a gleam catching my eye, and I snatched her hand, staring at the giant rock on her ring finger. "Sakura… Is this…?"

Sakura bit her lip, but she ended up grinning anyway. "This is what I wanted to tell you about!"

"Congratulations, Sakura!" I stood up to hug her, rocking her back and forth. "I'm so happy for you! Tell me, how did Sasuke do it? Let's be honest, no one could possibly imagine the younger Uchiha proposing, let alone falling in love with you."

Sakura blushed, become giddy like a school girl. "Well, I got home yesterday to a pitch-black home. Now this wasn't untypical because there would be times Sasuke would go on business trips in place for Itachi," Sakura smiled to herself, still living in her moment. "I walk in and the first thing I do usually is eat something. I saw that there was a container of anmitsu," She grinned, giggling to herself. "I took a big bite of it and I bit into something really hard! I panicked and spat everyone out, thinking my tooth came out, but I found this ring instead."

I giggled with her, taking her hand in mine, taking a look at her princess-cut diamond. "Wow, it's so pretty… Leave it to Sasuke to spoil you and rake in the jealousy when girls stare at this big rock, Sakura."

She blushed, grinning at me. There were no words to describe how happy I felt for her. "So when will it be your turn, Komo?"

"Me? No way, not yet. I only started seeing Itachi like a couple of months ago!" I blushed, though I'd have to admit I could already see us marrying. "Plus, he's got his hands full with Jun too."

Sakura shook her finger, tsk-ing at me. "Komo, Itachi isn't getting any younger. He's going to want to start a family of his own soon, though Jun is a good propelling factor."

I chuckled. "I kind of like going slow, though…" I looked at the framed picture of Itachi, Jun and I on our first "date" together. "Let's me live in this moment better. And it feels like there's more to learn about from Itachi."

"Did you guys have sex yet?"

I felt my ears steam with my blush. "Sakura!"

* * *

><p>"Okay, Jun, be a good boy while Itachi-niisan and I are gone, okay? Konan works really hard to make sure you're safe so don't give her a hard time." I ruffled Jun's hair, making the kid pout. "We'll be back before you know it, and I'll bring you a souvenir, but only if you're a good boy."<p>

"I'm going to miss you, Nee-san."

"What about Itachi-niisan?"

Jun looked up at him, eyes gleaming. "But I see Niisan every day!" I laughed, slightly surprised that I was slowly surpassing Itachi and Hachi on his list. I looked over at Itachi who tried to look mad, but his smile gave it away.

I kissed Jun on both his cheeks. "We'll be back soon. I love you, Jun." Itachi had also bent down to kiss Jun on his cheeks as well.

"I love you too!" Jun exclaimed.

We waved goodbye to each other, Itachi and I setting foot into his car. "Okay, are you ready for the long drive, Uchiha-san?" I smirked, buckling up.

"Only if you stay awake the entire time."

"Hey! I woke up early to calm Jun down from his nightmares this morning!" I poked Itachi's forehead, pouting. "And you were still sleeping calmly, all snuggled up in bed!"

"I lulled you back to sleep when you came back, didn't I?" Itachi threw a smirk at me. Those smirks! I still can't take them even though we're together now. Itachi started the car, heading on the road.

I had suggested to visit my biological parents on the outskirts of the city. I had the brilliant idea to make it a road trip so now Itachi was stuck with driving a six-hour route to visit said parents. I had been keeping in contact with them through letters and occasional phone-calls, and they were ecstatic to hear that I'd be going to go visit them.

I leaned my head on the window, looking at the colour-changing trees. The green was starting to fade away, leaving behind shades of golden yellow, cherry reds and chocolate-browns. It really did look beautiful outside. "I hope you're not falling asleep, Komo."

I turned to look at Itachi, sticking my tongue at him. "Entertain me, Itachi-san."

"I thought that was your job." Itachi gave an amused smile.

"Okay, fine, I'll tell you a story and then you let me sleep for half an hour, deal?" I stuck out my pinky for him, the driver glancing at it. He removed one hand from the wheel briefly to entangle his pinky with mine. "So this happened to me when I was in high school, so maybe when I was around sixteen," I turned the radio on, jazz music playing softly in the background while I was talking. "I'm pretty sure I was having a rough time, and I think Deidara and I weren't friends at that point because we were disagreeing on everything. So I made new 'friends' with some kids from my crafts' class. They were cool to me at that time- made awesome-looking artwork, and were pretty lax around the teachers and classmates. I decided to join them for an after school crafts' session. One of the guys invited me to go over to his house to hang out along with everyone else. Me being me, lonely and rebellious, I decided to go.

"It was fun at first; everyone was joking with each other and we all seemed to be getting along. Well, until I saw something being passed around. Now, I don't really care if they do drugs because at the end of the day that's their personal choice," I took a chocolate bar out, getting kind of hungry. "But they started to pressure me into it, and I'm not into that stuff, so I obviously refused. The guy who invited me told me I was being a little- _excuse my French_- bitch." I took a bite of the bittersweet heaven. "So I punched him and told him to get a life." Itachi chuckled at my brashness. "Funny thing is, I think he's the spokesperson for that Drug-free campaign going on back at home now." I laughed a little.

"What an interesting story, Komo. I didn't think you could get _that_ violent."

I puffed my cheeks out. "Hey, are you saying that I'm just a big softie? You should at least appreciate my story, Itachi! I'm opening up more to you." I sulked a little, not expecting his sarcastic reaction.

"Your story was amusing, to say the least. You are full of surprises, Komo, and that's why I like you." My puffed cheeks reddened, looking like two big apples.

"Shut up, Itachi. You embarrass me way too much." I mumbled, shoving the rest chocolate bar into my mouth. "Where are we staying tonight?"

"I found a traditional Japanese hotel we can stay at." Futons! "There is also private hot springs in our suite that I booked."

I looked at Itachi, eyes wide. "I've never been in a hot spring before…"

Itachi looked over to me, chuckling at my expression. He ruffled my hair, "I figured it'd be nice for the both of us."

We rolled up to the front of the traditional hotel, parking our car off to the side. The hotel was on a beautiful compound, surrounded by many Japanese Maple trees, stone statues and I could see a quaint pond behind the compound, a giant combine pumping the water off into the distance. It was so quiet and peaceful, I had almost forgot that we would be staying here tonight!

We both walked in and was immediately greeted by the staff. "Welcome, Uchiha-san! Would you like us to start your meal with you and your girlfriend now?"

"Yes, please." Girlfriend! It felt so nice to be called that!

One of the staff members led us through a couple of hallways, stopping front of a sliding door. She slid it open, revealing a room that could probably fit 20 tatami mats inside! It was very spacious and simple decorated, a wooden low-table in the middle of what I suppose was the living room. The sliding doors at the back of the room revealed a garden and a part of the pond, the private hot spring placed beside it. I dropped my stuff off and rushed in, looking out into the view.

"Itachi, this is beautiful!" I smiled, staring out at the sun that was starting to set a little.

Itachi came up beside me, leaning on the handrail. "I'm glad you like it." I moved closer to him, his arm instinctively wrapping around my body as I rested mine against his. Everything about him felt so right.

Our food came and we ate it happily together, becoming so full, I'm sure I could explode. I lay down on to the floor near the back sliding doors, looking up into the sky. Stars had already started to appear earlier, the sky darkening a little faster than usual on this beautiful Autumn day. I blinked slowly, slumber slowly consuming me.

I woke up with a kiss to my forehead, and I fluttered my eyes open, staring back at the familiar face of my boyfriend. "How long was I asleep for?" I mumbled, stretching.

"A couple of hours. You were snoring." Itachi chuckled, helping me sit up.

I stuck my tongue out at him. "Why did you wake me up?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to use the hot spring with me." I looked behind him, looking at the steaming pool of liquid, my muscles already relaxing at the thought of dipping in.

But then… That means we'd have to be almost completely naked together right?! "I-uh-Okay." I can keep it cool… All I'm seeing is a semi-naked Itachi, showing his abdomen and all right? Which means his hair might be down and, I don't know- I'm going nuts.

We both went to go shower separately, coming back in only our towels. I was already feeling embarrassed, having my body covered by virtually nothing. Itachi was already in the hot spring, his dampened hair running down his back, and, holy mother of Teresa, I could see his well-defined abdominal muscles peeking out from above the water. He smiled gently at me, somehow knowing that I was shy to get in with him. I dipped my foot in, the hot water feeling quite nice on my skin. I slid myself in, sinking into the warmth slowly, taking a seat beside Itachi.

"Comfortable?" Itachi's voice was so close to my ear, though he wasn't any particularly anywhere near me.

I nodded, "I didn't think water this hot would relax me." I chuckled a little, running the water through my fingers. They created light rippling patterns, reaching to the other end of the spring. "Hey, Itachi, do you ever think of how you'd be right now if you never met me?"

I looked over at him, his eyes closed, relaxing himself in the water. "Mm," A low grunt came from his throat, his eyes opening. The moon light had casted a silver-lined glow on his face, giving him a fantastical appearance. "I'd still be alone, and perhaps not even Jun would be by my side."

"Not even Jun?"

"No, Pein told me that you sacrificed a few things to help us out."

"Hah, I knew I couldn't trust Pein in not telling you." I pursed my lips.

Itachi chuckled, the water rippling under the low vibrations. "Thank you. If it wasn't for you, I would be missing a lot of things in my life."

"I think you give me too much credit, Itachi." I motioned for him to sit in front of me. He rose an eyebrow at me, but complied anyway. I ran my hands through his damp locks. I started to braid his hair as neat as possible, though it was hard since his hair was damp and my hands were wet. I tried not to tug on his hair too much, Itachi loosening his shoulders as I took sections of his hair into my hands. "I wish I had hair like yours, Itachi." I mused, tying his braid off with a hair tie that was around my wrist.

"You are special just the way you are." I blushed at his words, becoming a mess Part- I don't know, Part 3089? Every time I'm with him, I can't help but let his words wrap around my heart and strangle it to pieces, reducing me to some giddy puddle.

He turned around, standing right at my eye-level since the pool had a deeper pit at the bottom. He trailed his fingers up my arm, giving me goose bumps, his hand coming to the base of my nape, pulling me forward. He took my lips in his, nipping at them, making my arms wrap around his neck. I felt his tongue slip into my mouth, a well-earned hum entering our ears. Itachi broke his kiss, but sent a path of wet love bites on my jaw and neck, nibbling at the humid flesh.

"Itachi…" I moaned, feeling his hands caress my thighs. Those calloused fingers of his, running gently up my thighs, started a pool of fire at the pit of my stomach. I felt myself get light headed, and then darkness consumed my vision and my mind.

I squinted my eyes, cracking them open. I sat up and looked around me, seeing that I was tucked into my futon, Itachi sleeping in the one next to mine. I looked out the window, the sun about to rise behind the horizon. What happened last night anyway? I stretched, but laid back down anyway, turning on my side to look at Itachi's sleeping face. His hair was still in the braid I put it in, some loose pieces of hair falling on to his face. His lips were parted slightly, his long eyelashes almost touching the tops of his cheeks. I scooched over, brushing the hair away from his face.

Itachi stirred in his sleep, his eyes opening slowly, looking straight at me. I smiled, kissing him on the forehead lightly. "Sorry I woke you up, didn't I?" Strong arms wrapped around my form, pulling me into his chest. I yelped, but giggled right after, my face burying into his chest.

"Go back to sleep with me." He mumbled, but I caught every word that came off his lips.

I sighed happily, wrapping my arms around him. "Yeah, yeah. Go to sleep, you Sleepyhead."

The both of us woke up a couple of hours later, the blankets completely tangled around us. I sat up, stretching, and then pulling Itachi up to stretch with me. "Ah, Itachi, what happened to me last night?"

He stood up from the futon. "You were hit with too much heat and fainted. I could've taken advantage of you."

"Hah, well you wouldn't because you're such a gentleman, right?" I snorted, crossing my arms across my chest. I looked up as Itachi threw a knowing look over his shoulder, a smirk spreading across his lips. "I-Itachi!"

* * *

><p>"Mama! Papa!" I rushed to them, bombarding them with hugs. I pulled away and took my bags from Itachi. "This is Uchiha Itachi. Itachi, these two sweet people are my parents."<p>

My Dad shook hands with my boyfriend, smiling at him. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Uchiha-san. My daughter talks a lot about you in her letters."

"Please, call me Itachi." Itachi smiled, a hint of delight behind his lips. "Does she talk about me that much? That's not the first time I've heard about that happening."

"Ahhh, let's go inside now!" I felt my face grew rosy, shoving all three of them into their sweets shop. The aroma of red beans and maccha hit me, my Mom bringing out a tray of sweets for us.

"We'll be done work in a little bit, so sit tight, okay?" She smiled at us, looking over at Itachi. "How did you end up with Komo-chan anyway? I'm sure you've met better girls, right?"

"Mama!" I exclaimed, my face heating up.

"There's a lot of things to like about Komorebi that a lot of girls don't have." Itachi simply said, even making my Mom blush.

She almost squealed, clasping her hands together, suddenly reminding me of Sakura. "Komo-chan, he sounds like a decent man, you cling on to him, okay?" She left the two of us alone, pulling a sigh from me.

"Everyone just loves to embarrass me, huh, Itachi." I gave him a crooked smile.

"You are hard to faze, but once people know your weakness, they exploit it." Itachi threw a smile back at me, ruffling my hair. "Besides, part of loving you means I get to embarrass you all I want." Part of loving me? Ah, well I guess I already confessed a long time ago…

"Hey, Itachi?"

"Hm?"

"I love you." I grinned, Itachi's mouth slightly parting, his eyes a little wider than usual.

Breathlessly, he replied with, "I love you too, Komo."

* * *

><p>AN:

I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, but the end is pretty soon! If you ever have any questions about the story or particular parts of it for me to clarify, send them to me and I can make a big trivia chapter at the end to provide some insights for you guys! I also will take any requests regarding this particular storyline (maybe some spin-off one-shots of any of the pairings if you'd like). I'm also really excited to start a new story very soon!

The reason why her parents are at Neji's compound will be revealed next chapter!

Replies:

**a Wiccan**: Haha maybe my story was the mail!

**Mina'sMadness**: Aw, thank you for your review, it was so lovely to read in the morning as I woke up! I'm still quite happy at the current attention I get for my story, such as yourself, so I'm thankful for what I am given. If you recommend any communities where you know and think I could get more attention, please let me know because I have no idea how communities work!

**Mitchell343e**: Not yet, but soon!


	14. Chapter 14

The visit to my Parents' home was a success! My parents loved Itachi (who doesn't?), giving us a blessing of approval of our relationship. I thought it was too early for any kind of blessing, but I it had greatly relieved Itachi that my father liked him. But like I said, it's not that hard to fall in love with such a flawless man.

However, less about me, more about Sakura and Sasuke! They were both getting married today and I was to attend as a Bridesmaid, as Ino was given the job of Maid of Honour. I tugged on the dress, the dress being a little bit too short for my liking, but Sakura and Ino had agreed that it looked this length had looked the best on me. The dress was a pale lavender colour, making my skin look brighter than usual. My hair had grown out quite a bit since I cut it before everything had happened with Neji, and was long enough to be put into some fancy hairstyle.

"Okay, is everyone ready?" Ino shouted, gaining the attention of everyone. "Just a quick run-through of what we're doing again. Maid of Honor and Best Man go down the aisle first, following the couples that we rehearsed earlier. At the end should be Sakura, got it?" A round of agreements went.

We filed into two lines, and I looked diagonally to my right, smiling at Itachi. "You look dapper, as usual, Itachi."

"And you look beautiful, as usual." He leaned over to whisper into my ear, "But I'd much rather see you without the dress." The ear he spoke into felt hot, and I would've punched him there for putting indecent thoughts into my mind, but the thing is I wouldn't have minded his hands all over me anyway.

The doors opened, the organ playing their wedding song. Ino walked first, linking arms with Itachi. Sasuke would have chosen Naruto as his Best Man, but he thought that it'd be more appropriate to have his beloved brother to do it instead. Plus, Naruto was married and I guess he already had his spotlight some time ago. I was the one walking with Naruto anyway, linking arms with the silly blonde, taking our steps behind Ino and Itachi. I could see Sasuke, waiting for his Bride to come down the aisle, all dressed up in a white suit. I wonder what Itachi would look like with a white suit on…

I sat down next to Ino, watching everyone come up behind us one by one. Last but not least, was Sakura, in her beautiful wedding gown, her dad holding her hand as they both walked up to Sasuke. Her dad took his hand, putting Sakura's in it. "Take good care of her, Sasuke." They exchanged smiles, and it was the first time I've seen such a genuine smile on his face. He really was truly happy, finally. I shed a few tears as I heard them exchange their vows, the both of them completely lost in each other's world.

The church bells were ringing, all the girls lining up to catch the bouquet. I didn't want to participate in this particular tradition, but I knew that Sakura would fire a string of words into my ear if she saw me trying to run away from this particular part. I stood behind a bunch of girls, hoping to purposely miss the bouquet anyway. "Three…two…one…!" Sakura threw the bouquet, the bunch of flowers landing into Ino's hands. Ah, I knew it.

"See? This is a sign, Sai!" Sai smiled at her, kissing her on the cheek, the crowd cheering, knowing who's wedding would be coming next.

I walked over to Itachi, Jun in his arms. "Nee-san!" Jun shouted happily, Itachi transferring him to my arms instead. "You look very pretty."

"Ah, really? That's not what you said when you first met me." I laughed, Jun pouting.

"I take that back! Besides, I'm not the only one who thinks you're pretty." I must've looked confused, the action encouraging Jun to finish his thought. "Itachi-niisan always looks at your picture before bed!"

I bit my lip, looking at Itachi who had the faintest trace of a blush on his cheeks. "Oh, is that so?"

"Yeah!" Jun exclaimed, not knowing he was embarrassing the shit out of his father-figure.

I chuckled, ruffling Jun's hair. "I'll be sure to ask Itachi later about it." I winked at Itachi, the blush slightly deepening. Very uncharacteristic of him, but oh-so cute.

Itachi drove us back to his home. I was practically living there now, but I still owned my apartment. Whenever I thought back to my own home, I always would remember when I was single and would ask Deidara to hang out with me. I'm sure though that he's doing alright with Sasori, and I hope he understands that I'm not ditching him. After all, I still throw him a call once in a while, so that's something right?

* * *

><p>We arrived at the office together, greeting Kisame. "Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Uchiha." Kisame smirked.<p>

"Hey! We're not even married." I poked the shark in his shoulder.

Kisame chuckled. "That's because Itachi is too damn slow. He should've stolen you away a year ago."

"Get back to work, Kisame." Itachi didn't even spare his good friend a look. "Sasuke and Sakura are away so you might want to get started on your increased workload." I smiled, Kisame sighing.

I followed behind Itachi, making our way to his office. I set off to make his morning coffee, adding three milks and one sugar, just like how Sakura taught me. I strode over to the cabinet, the motions familiar with me, as if I've lived this life a thousand times over again. I took out my pen, making some marks on some of the papers, considering them as future investments. I looked over at Itachi, smiling to myself. He really was mine, and I don't think I could ask for more.

"What's so funny?" He didn't even have to look over at me to know if I was doing anything weird.

"Nothing, Itachi." I really did like saying his name, as if I owned it. I stacked the papers alphabetically away. "So, the agenda for today is to go about like any usual day- scope out future investments, brief Sasuke's team with some numbers to look forward to, have lunch, and then finish the day up with paperwork, correct?"

"Yes."

"Alright, let me know if you need anything else. I'll be in my office."

I picked up a bunch of thin binders, making my way to the door. "Not even a goodbye kiss?" I looked back, a playful smirk appearing on Itachi's face.

And to this day, my heart still flutters at whatever he does, surprising me all the time. "Nope, Uchiha-san. Gotta stay focused." I chuckled, going back to my office.

Most of the morning, I went through application after application, trying to find something worthy to look in to. But like most of the other mornings, they turned out empty. It was hard to find something worth the effort and money from our company, seeing as a lot of them just need some extra cash, and it'll probably go to a waste. Since I've worked for Itachi, up until I transferred to Neji's company, they had only invested in two ideas, one of them being that teashop project I had lead. When I moved back to the company six months later, till now (it's been almost five months since I came back), we've only found one potential one, but have not proceeded with our operations. Time was running slowly, but surely, meaning I could feel it slip by me as soon as it had come.

I sighed, getting up. Oh well, I'll deal with this in a moment. I have to go brief Sasuke's team now anyway. With a bunch of files under my arm, stalking my way to Sasuke's side of the floor. "How's the morning treating you, Opal?" I asked.

"The usual. Directing calls is not what I'd call busy, but day after day, they get kind of boring, I suppose." Opal shrugged, a hint of a smile on her face. "But I'll be looking forward to going to lunch with Hidan."

"Ah. Make sure to wear ear plugs. I don't want you to become Mrs. Hidan yet, okay?" I joked, a never-before-seen blush entering her cheeks. "I'm just teasing. I'll see you later, Opal." I waved her goodbye, moving past her desk, to another corridor. I passed the elevators, coming to a halt at the reception desk.

"Hi, Ino." I smiled. "Is everybody ready for the brief meeting?"

Ino smiled back, nodding. God, her shade of blonde was so perfect, and her eyes were so blue. No wonder Sai was madly in love with her, other than the fact that she works hard at her job. "I'll gather everyone around. Let's meet in one of the private rooms at our wing."

I followed her into the Financial wing, waving at a few familiar faces. I almost felt like a celebrity, but I guess dating the CEO of an Investor Corporation gives you that status automatically. "You can go on right ahead. Sasuke-san has actually asked one of his mentors to come and take a look at our meeting so don't be alarmed at the strange man when he comes in late."

Late? That doesn't seem very mentor-like.

Everyone had been filling the seats in slowly, with one seat available for this so-called mentor. I started the meeting, having a forewarning that he was going to be late anyway. "Let's start this off with a good note. As usual, our current investments have brought in a total revenue increase of about six-percent, steadily climbing at an exponential rate. However, I do expect to see some bumps down the road, due to some investments not cooperating with our criteria." The room fell silent. "Of course, Human Resources was supposed to take this into consideration, and so is our Public Relations department, but we will also have to fix something with our department to comply with all the other changes happening around us."

"Ah, sorry I'm late, I came across an old lady wh-"

I looked over at the door, locking eyes with familiar black ones, the same hair lopped over to one side. "Kakashi-sensei?" I cocked my head to the side.

He stared at me, blinking for a while. "Komorebi-san?"

"Hah, who knew my Thesis Advisor was also the mentor of Sasuke-kun?" I snorted. "Come, join us, please." He sat down, slightly embarrassed, but not too fazed at the least. "Kakashi-sensei, do you have any comments of concerns about our current financial statistics?" Sorry for putting you on the spot, but you came late, dude.

He scratched his chin, staring behind me. "Your numbers, though accurate, seem to reflect a bigger issue. How many investments have you guys made within the year?"

I bit my lip, "Only two, with a pushing possibility of one more."

"Hm, that really isn't too much." Kakashi leaned back into his chair. "Have you ever thought of seeking investments internationally?"

"Well, we do have a few of them, and Sasuke is normally in charge of over-sea investments, but we have yet to expand further." I scratched at my own chin this time. "I am open to all your possibilities, however."

Kakashi seemed to be smiling behind his scarf, though it was still kind of hard to tell. "I'll deliberate with you and Itachi for lunch, if that's okay."

"Alright, meeting adjourned then!" Everyone shuffled back to their respective desks, leaving me and Kakashi in the room.

"It's quite a pleasant surprise to meet you here, Komorebi-san."

I smiled. "I could say the same for you, Kakashi-sensei." I gathered my things, Kakashi standing up from his seat.

"You've seem to have grown up quite a lot since you've graduated."

"Hey, it's only been a couple of years, don't think you're that old yet!" I exclaimed, walking out of the meeting room with him. "Come, let's go see Itachi-san."

I passed by Ino and Opal. Both of them were fascinated by the man who was trailing behind me. Of course, I couldn't disagree with them either. Kakashi always had something covering half his face, though I don't know why. I'm sure he was very good-looking underneath his scarf. He wasn't dressed particularly good or anything, but under his black t-shirt, you can kind of see how he's built: damn fine. Though, nothing beats Itachi, let's all be honest.

"I'll get my jacket, but you can head into his office." Kakashi nodded, stepping into Itachi's office. I fetched my jacket and had headed over there as well, the both of them in the midst of a conversation.

"It's a pleasure to have you here, Kakashi-san." Itachi said to the white-haired man, not really glancing up from his work till I walked in.

Kakashi chuckled a little. "It was also a pleasure to bump into my previous student, Komorebi-san."

"Oh?" That's a different reaction that I haven't heard from Itachi before.

Itachi gave me some look, thought I really couldn't read it. I nodded, putting my jacket on. "Kakashi-sensei was my thesis advisor, though I'd say I was in the computer labs more than he was." I rolled my eyes.

"Hey, let's not be like that. I let you off considerably easy with what you gave me for your thesis!"

I lightly punched the older man in the shoulder. "My theses were brilliant. It was the best bullshit you've ever read from an education standpoint, wasn't it, Kakashi-sensei?" I smirked.

Itachi abruptly stood up, well as abruptly as a graceful man could do. He closed his folders with a smack, taking his jacket off the coat hanger. "Let's go to lunch. We don't have all day to have a reunion." He brushed past the both of us, not even moving his eyes to look at me. Felt almost like a cold breeze had blown by.

I frowned, but followed after him, all three of us making our way downstairs to Fan. Itachi seemed to be in a more slightly foul mood than usual because he was snapping at all the waiters which was quite new.

"The water here is not acceptable, bring me another glass."  
>"The décor on this table isn't pleasing to the eye at all. Get rid of it."<br>"Are you sure you work here? Why is your tie crooked?"

I bit my lip, the tops of my eyebrows breaking out in a sweat a little. "Itachi, don't be so hard on-"

"_Komorebi-san_," He looked up at me, his eyes glaring darts at me. "Brief me on the finance meeting we had."

I swallowed a dry lump, willing it to go down with my anxiousness. I will not let him belittle me because I didn't even do anything wrong. "Well, _Uchiha-san_," Two can play this stupid game. "Kakashi-sensei has suggested that we expand our horizons further into the countries over-seas. Sasuke-kun usually deals with this with Sakura, but he wanted to discuss it with you since I cannot give accurate insight on this plan." I mumbled, not even bothering to look at him as I sipped from my glass.

"Hn." He looked at Kakashi, the tardy guy flinching a little under his hard gaze. "I'll see to it with my assistant. Thank you for your suggestion, Kakashi-san."

Kakashi scratched the back of his head, "Ah, please, I do what I can to help my previous students. Sasuke is a prodigy whom I have the pleasure of mentoring. Komorebi-san has provided a bright outlook on the future of economics and marketing." Kakashi coughed, realizing none of us were going to acknowledge what he said. "You know, I'd love to stay for lunch, but I think Naruto-kun wanted to meet me for coffee during his lunch break, so I guess I'll be going now, haha…"

I frowned, looking over at him. "Alright, if you insist. But we should get coffee sometime, Kakashi-sensei." He nodded and I waved at him, Itachi not even bothering to say goodbye.

Lunch was completely silent. Itachi thought he could play the silent game, but I can play it better because I own a vagina, okay? If it's anything I learned from high school, it's that the females win at the silent-treatment. If I can go for months without talking to Deidara, I can do it with Itachi too! I finished my lunch quickly, thinking to just go back to the office as soon as possible. I really wanted to cry instead because- well, why is he being like this? I didn't do anything wrong, did I? If anything, he was being unreasonable! If I really did do something wrong, just tell me, dammit!

I dumped my napkin on the table, getting up as I angrily put my jacket on, nearly knocking my glass of water over. "Where are you going?" Itachi moved his eyes to stare at me, though his head didn't really budge to fully give me his attention.

"I'm going to do work because you obviously don't want me here." I spat out, turning to leave. I even apologized to the waiter on behalf of Itachi since they did not deserve that treatment at all.

I stormed up the offices, everyone feeling the vibe from me, avoiding where I was going. Even Opal wasn't sure how to react to my 180-degree flip of personality. Hell, even Kisame didn't know what to do.

I sat at my desk, burying beneath the paperwork I so desperately wanted to drown myself in. Stupid, stupid, stupid Itachi! Arghhh!

I scrapped the piece of paper I was writing on, 100-percent frustrated now. I leaned back in my chair, looking up at the ceiling. I wanted to fight the tears that was threatening to spill from my eyes. Our relationship was so perfect all this time… Why did we have to fight?

* * *

><p>I looked up at the clock, realizing it was almost nine at night. I glanced behind me, and indeed the sky was pitch-black with the addition of the concrete stars. I got up, looking at the giant pile of work I successfully completed. I felt slightly better that I was so productive, but I felt so heavy, and so tired. It was similar to the feeling of being drained when I had learned about Neji's cancer, but this was still different. I reached into my purse, pulling out my phone.<p>

"Hello, un?"

"Deidara, it's me." I smiled a little, leaning against the window as I looked out. "Are you busy?"

Deidara snorted, widening my smile slightly. "Me? Been free for a while, un. Sasori went to a workshop abroad."

"Ah." I bit my lip, feeling slightly bad that I called up my best friend because I couldn't fall back on anyone else tonight. "Can I come over?"

"Unfortunately for me, you're always welcome here, un." I chuckled at Deidara's response. It was definitely something he'd say and I was starting to look up to things.

"I'll be there in ten then. I'll be walking from work." I walked out of my office after hanging up on my best friend, shoving my coat through my arms. I glanced over at Itachi's office, and sure enough his light was still on. I scoffed to myself and left.

I arrived at Deidara's place, the blonde already handing me a glass of white wine. "Wow, you look like shit, un."

I chuckled a little, sinking into his sofa while his TV was filling the empty silence. "I feel like shit."

"Well I guess this is my queue to ask you why, un." Deidara sat beside me, flipping through the channels. Watching him flip through them made me slightly dizzy.

I took a swig from the wine glass. "I'm really frustrated with Itachi. He refused to talk to me during lunch while my old thesis advisor was there."

"Any idea, un?"

I looked at him, my lip slightly trembling. "I don't fucking know! I'm mad at myself for feeling this way, but I'm also mad at him because he's being such a child about it!" I sniffled, the tears slowly rolling down. "Maybe he was, I don't know, jealous? But why would he be when he's clearly the only one in my heart!"

Deidara pulled me into a hug, letting his shoulder soak up my tears. "Shh, Itachi is being stupid. I'm sure he'll apologize right away when he sees you, un! Don't be upset!"

I had fallen asleep on Deidara's shoulder (mascara smudged, eyeliner flowing down), so the blonde let me sleep, heading to his own room to go to bed. I woke up in the middle of the night, feeling so empty, and yet slightly numb. It really was hard going a night without having him by my side. I'm sure Jun must also feel down that he couldn't have the both of us tuck him in last night. I pulled out my phone, the screen brighter than the sun.

0 messages.  
>0 voicemails.<p>

I frowned, knowing that I shouldn't have expected him to give into his pride so easily. He clearly thought he didn't do anything wrong!

I huffed, gathering my things to make my way back to my apartment, to my own damn bed. Anything beats Deidara's squishy sofa. I walked down the stairs, my high heels making click-clack noises with each step. I smiled to myself, remembering how I couldn't even take a step in them without looking like a duck. Now I could walk in them and rival next to a model. Well, anything higher than four inches might still press a challenge for me.

I took my keys out of my purse, looking at a piece of paper stuck to the crack between the door frame and the door. I pulled it out and unlocked the door, heading in. I threw all my stuff on to the couch, plopping down on to the firm goodness. Much better than Deidara's. Ahh.

I opened the (now crumpled) note in my hand.

_Komorebi,_

_I came by today to see if you were home yet, but you weren't._

_Itachi_

What? What kind of note is this?! Itachi, you stupid little shit! I crumpled the piece of paper in anger, stomping on it with the heel of my foot. Why do you have to be like this? Swallow your goddamn pride and do something!

I ruffled my own hair, groaning. Fuck this, I'll go to bed, and go to work and be flawless!

* * *

><p>I strutted into work, trying to shake the nervous feeling off. This really did bring me back to my first day of being here! Since I wanted to act flawless, I wanted to look like it too. I pulled my hair up into a high ponytail, letting my bangs fall to frame my face. I wore a tight, high-waisted, wool-knit skirt that stopped just below the knees, a slit in the back. I tucked my light gray, button-up shirt into it, leaving the first few buttons undone to show off the pretty necklace I was wearing around my neck. I threw on some nice looking heels, and bam, I looked damn good if I do say so myself.<p>

I walked in and greeted Opal, curving my red lips up into a smile. "Good morning, Opal."

"Komorebi? I almost couldn't recognize you! Your outfit is quite a pleasant change today!" She smiled, giving me a thumbs up.

Even Kisame whistled at me! "You're looking like you just killed a man, and then came straight to work, Missy!"

"Killed? Kisame, I don't take hearts away from people." I laughed. "Get back to work, please."

I headed to my office to drop my purse and coat off, and then made my way to Itachi's office. I didn't bother knocking on it, opening the door revealing the Uchiha to be talking on the phone. He twirled around in his chair, pausing mid-sentence to gaze at me. I bowed, though haven't made eye contact with him yet. I strode to his coffee machine, brewing up his cup of joe. While his coffee was being made, I went over to his file cabinet and did the usual duty of looking through everything he left on top of it.

"We'll talk later." Itachi hung up and I could feel his eyes on me, but I really refused to acknowledge him. "Where did you go last night?"

"Deidara's." I simply answered.

"Did you get my note?"

"Yes." I shoved some papers into their respective folders.

"Komorebi, look at me when I talk to you."

I gripped on to the sheets I was holding, turning to look at him. "What?" He bit his lip, looking like he was debating on saying something. The coffee machine went off at that exact time, relieving me from his tension, though I know it only made it worse for him. I went over to get his coffee, setting it at his desk. "I'll be in my office if you need me. Eat lunch without me, I'm going to get coffee with Kakashi-sensei today."

I saw his knuckles go white at the sound of Kakashi's name. "Fine."

I nodded curtly, heading back to my desk. I told you I can play this game too.

The morning passed by quite quickly. Opal had buzzed me to let me know that Kakashi was waiting at the elevators. I packed up my things, and my way out my office door, bumping into Itachi on my way to the corridor. I looked at him for the first time since yesterday, fully, searching his eyes for anything. He blinked and any emotion that was there was void now.

"Whom are you eating lunch with today?" I asked quietly.

"Just on my own."

Now I felt bad. I mean, I'm sure Itachi had ate lunch alone before, but when was the last time he really ate alone? Without Jun, without his brother, without me? I bit my lip, almost making it bleed. I can't do this to him. I know he was acting nonchalant about this entire mess, but I could see flashes of it in his eyes. Those flashes of hurt and loneliness… Things I used to see in him before we were together.

"You'll be late if you don't meet with Kakashi-san now." Itachi turned to move away from me.

It was the coldest I have ever felt in a long while now.

I met up with Kakashi and we went to some café that he suggested. I had let him bring me there since I was too much of a mess to actually speak up about my preferences. We had talked about business for the most part, commenting on the food there, but nothing really too major. Well, until he brought him up his Sensei-side to him.

"Komorebi-san, is there something bugging you?"

I looked at him, broken from my trance. "Huh?"

"I know you as a student based on your work, but I also know you based on how you talk so animatedly whenever you described an experiment to me. You're rarely gloomy like this, so I hope you don't mind my probing." Kakashi looked at me from one of his eyes, the other one obstructed by his hair.

"I'm sure you caught it yesterday," I sighed, leaning back into my chair. "But Itachi and I are playing the silent game, well we were until this morning, and it's just getting to me. I can't think of any reason why he got mad at me yesterday." I frowned, looking into my mug of liquid black.

"I noticed." Kakashi chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. "And I can tell you why."

"What?" I looked at him. He fully had my attention now.

"Itachi-san was probably thinking about what I told Sasuke-kun a long time ago."

I raised an eyebrow, cocking my head to the side. Whaaat? "Tell me right now or forever hold your peace."

"Well," Kakashi scratched his head. "Years ago, when I was still mentoring Sasuke and Naruto, we had a serious conversation about soul-mates." Really? Sasuke got sentimental with this guy, with Naruto? "Naruto asked if I had ever thought of seriously settling down because I clearly wasn't doing too much for the society anymore. The future generation would come and sweep my work off the floor with their own studies." He rubbed his nose, "I told them that I had someone in mind, but they were my student and it'd be impossible to have an affair with her because that was against the school's policy, as well as my own morale."

"And?"

"Well Sasuke had found out that I was a thesis advisor so he did some research and used the information to blackmail me with it so I could mentor him better."

"Sasuke did that?" I laughed. "Well, I really don't hold that against him since you're so tardy, Sensei." Kakashi sighed, his shoulder dropping. I patted him on the back, "But what did this all mean, Kakashi-sensei? I feel like I missed your point entirely."

"The system was really on a fluke…"

"Did you say something?"

"Ah, no," Kakashi shook his hands. "The point was well, you were that someone."

"Haah?!" I heard my voice reach higher octaves than never before. "You had a crush on me?" Kakashi covered my mouth, trying to shush me. "So, what you're saying is, Itachi got jealous of this old information he got from Sasuke a few years ago? What the hell!" I smacked Kakashi on his shoulder. "You fix this right now! You tell him that that was a mistake from years ago and that you're not in love with me, and that you wish to see us mend things!"

"Ow, Komorebi-san, stop hitting me-!"

"You tell him this instance, Kakashi! I don't care if you die tomorrow, you have to tell him before you die!" I continued to assault my Sensei, tears of relief coming to my eyes. Kakashi would tell him and it'd be all over! I could go back to living with Itachi, hopefully get married, and never have to deal with stupid arguments like this one ever again!

"Okay, okay!" Kakashi quickly complied to me, my palms stopping their motions.

I dragged him up by his hand, throwing some cash on to the counter. "I'll pay for lunch, just set this all straight!"

We rushed towards the Uchiha offices, passing by a jewelry shop. I don't know what compelled me to look inside, but I did, and, lo'-and-behol', there was Itachi in the shop! I squinted, hanging on to Kakashi, dragging him inside the shop. "H-Hey! I thought we were going to settle this, why are we going in h-"

"Itachi." My voice was hard like stone, Itachi looking up from what he was doing. "You tell me you went to go eat lunch on your own, making me feel sorry for you." I took a deep breath, gripping on to Kakashi's hand as a way to cope with my increasing tension. "I wanted to set things straight for you because it tears me apart being away from you." His eyes glanced down at the hand I was holding, but I ignored him and the rising embarrassment. "But instead, you come to a jewelry shop looking for what seem to be engagement rings with another woman?"

The girl who was beside him stood up, looking shameful like a deer caught in headlights.

"What the actual hell, Itachi?" I threw Kakashi's hand out of mine. "What the fuck?" I felt the blood rush to my ears, my head, my stomach. I was shaking out of anger and embarrassment and I could feel the world spinning around me.

"I'm looking at them for you."

"So you ask me, dammit! I'm your girlfriend, not her! What is she going to know about us, huh?" I was yelling at this point, everybody's heads turning toward us. "You know what? Don't answer me. Save your pride and mine." I turned, dropping his gaze. "If you're embarrassed to be seen with me, then tell me." I said quietly, walking out of the shop, heart in clenched in my hand.

* * *

><p>AN:

Good evening, everyone. Hope your weekend has been treating you well, or you've been treating yourself well. I have added yet another plot twist, right before this story ends, dun dun dun! Next chapter will be the last, and will be followed by an epilogue shortly after. Next chapter is actually quite short, so I'm wondering if I should publish the epilogue right after it, or should I just wait a little bit in between? I'll figure it out, I guess. Didn't think I'd finish this story in about a month's time, it's actually very satisfying. I'm very happy with it, and I can't wait to start another one!

Replies:

**Mitchell343e: **I had different plans for her parents, but I thought this direction was the most realistic and I could prevent myself from dragging this story on. I believe Neji will be at peace now too! Thanks for your continued comments!

**searbear17:** Oh no, haha, don't cry! He is quite beautiful, if I do say so myself. I would love his hair! I think we can all agree to be in a hot spring with Itachi alone, haha! Thank you for your comments!

**a Wiccan:** Your reminder is greatly loved, so I thank you for telling me once again that you enjoy my story! Komo can sacrifice a lot of things, but she there's one thing she won't sacrifice directly. You'll see what I mean in the next chapter!

**Mina'sMadness:** I do like dramatic themes in writing, however, I really wanted to keep their scene simple and realistic. I could have made Komo blow up at her parents, but I didn't find the reason too because if I was her, I think I'd react something similar to how she did. Haha, I think I would be one of those scarred children from hot springs and fanfics, so I decided to take a different approach to the scene, making it more intimate. It's the first time someone has called my writing elegant! I would love to braid Itachi's hair if ever possible too! Your comments warm me up, so thank you for continuing to support me!

**Wonderfantasy:** Thanks so much for your support! I'm so glad you like it!

**AriaxCantabile: **Aw, that's a sweet comment! I'm happy that you enjoy it so much!

-tofufuu


	15. Chapter 15: Final

One week.

I had gone one week without talking to the Uchiha, living in my own apartment again. Deidara had visited me every day since everything had happened, making sure I was okay and not doing anything dangerous with the broken state I was in.

I forgot how to breathe, how to function, when all I knew were tears and the throbbing pain in my heart. I was bed ridden, I was torn, and most of all, I didn't want to let this get to me. I wanted to be with Itachi so badly. He wanted to get married to me, I could see that after countless reassuring words from Deidara, but I was so hurt by it all, that I couldn't bring myself to believe his words at the same time. Itachi had left me text messages, emails and voicemails, but I haven't opened any of them because I wanted him to see me. I wanted him to see how broken he made me, and yet he hasn't swallowed his pride to bring himself to my doorstep. Why?

I turned over in my bed, staring at the picture of Itachi, Jun and I at the amusement park. It was my favourite picture because it was the first time Jun had acknowledged Itachi as his father.

_The Ferris wheel was going higher and higher, and I swore Jun was becoming more and more awed at the view before him. Everything that was so big to him was now only a fraction of the size, his eyes lighting up with the view of the park. "Nee-san! You were right! This is so cool!"_

_I smiled, ruffling his hair. "It was Itachi's idea. You should be calling him the cool one." I nudged Itachi's side, the man beside me looking out the window with pink-tinged cheeks._

_"Ah, really?" Jun looked over at us, eyes wide._

_I nodded, grinning. We were now at the very top of the Ferris wheel, at the twelve o' clock position, the Ferris wheel slowing to a stop to let us bask in the glory of all the artificial stars on the ground below us. "Should make a wish, Jun. It's not that often you can be so high off the ground." I ruffled his hair._

_He nodded, closing his eyes to make a wish._

_"What did you wish for?"_

_"I don't think I'm supposed to tell you, Nee-san, but-" Jun giggled, "-Because you know, it might not come true, but my wish had already came true anyway!"_

_"Jun, you're supposed to wish for something you don't have!" I laughed, taking the kid in my lap._

_He looked over at Itachi, "Well, I wished for a Papa, but I already have one."_

_I looked over at Itachi, the poor man turning completely into mush at Jun's words. "Jun, you don'thave to-"_

_"But you are! You're the best Papa I could ever wish for!"_

I smiled to myself. I threw the covers off me, getting up, reading the clock. 5:46 a.m. I really wasn't going back to sleep anyway, I might as well go for a walk.

I bundled myself up, taking a walk to the harbour. It was a twenty-minute walk, but I had the sudden urge to head over and watch the waves crash over and over again against each other. I got the railings where Itachi had kissed me the very first time, but the feelings have numbed over. It was a happy memory and that's where it belonged. I leaned over the railing, looking at the sun rise above the horizon. In just a few hours, I'd decide to go to work. I'll act like I'm okay, like how I first started this job. I'll love my job and I'll continue on with my life as if I haven't met him before. It'll be a good day.

I'll keep the good memories and leave it at that.

I entered the offices, everyone's eyes on me. "Komorebi-san…" Opal's jaw dropped.

I smiled. "Good morning, how was your weekend, Opal?"

"It, it was great, t-thank you for asking." She bowed slightly, still at awe.

"Opal, I know I haven't been to work in a week, but please!" I threw in a chuckle. "Don't think anything has changed between us."

"Actually-"

"Nonsense!" I waved my hand. I had an uneasy feeling in my gut. I walked over to Itachi's office, everyone's eyes still on mine. I knocked on the door, and opened it without waiting for a response.

"Komorebi…" Itachi had looked up from his work, a look of slight disbelief on his face. The girl who was at the jewelry shop was standing beside him, looking over his shoulder. Her eyes were on mine now, though she still had that frightened look to her.

"Good morning, Uchiha-san." I smiled, fighting back all my urges to drop dead. I made my way to his coffee machine. "I didn't know we were hiring."

"Ah, well," He cleared his throat, quite evidently uncomfortable. "I wanted to hire an assistant for you since you bombard yourself with work all the time as a habit."

"If I had wanted an assistant, I would've asked, wouldn't have I?"

"I've sent you countless emails asking and-"

"I said I would have asked, wouldn't have I?" I turned to look at him straight in the eye. "If I was working to the bone, do not think for one second that I am killing myself slowly. I enjoy my job and working for you, however, if you see better fits for my position, perhaps it'd be better to just tell me honestly." My shoulders slumped, my resolve breaking with every centimetre they dropped. I looked down at the cup of coffee, my hand shaking the ceramic glass against its dedicated saucer.

"Natsu, go help my brother." Itachi ordered the shaking girl out of his office, the door gently shut behind her. "Komorebi, I'm sorry for everything that has led up to this poi-"

"No, no you are not." I swallowed, placing the cup loudly on his desk. "If you were truly sorry, you'd throw everything out of your hands and set things right, and not wait a week later when I have come back to work." I approached him, the man standing up from his chair. "I cried pathetically in bed for three days straight, but for what? You didn't know how much I was hurting, how could you have? I waited for another four more days, hoping that you'd throw your pride and ego out the door and come see the woman you love, do you understand?" I stared straight at him in the eyes. "If you want to set things straight, you will do it properly and you will not assume anymore. You are intelligent, one of the many reasons out of a thousand as to why I love you; I'm sure you can figure out how to gain my trust again." I breathed in, not knowing I had been holding it. "Itachi, I love you and I don't think I could let you go, but you are going to play the cards to make it up to me."

He was speechless. His eyes were wide and blinking, his mouth agape. "Komo…"

I stared at him, cocking my head to one side, my arms relaxing beside me. "Yeah?"

"I can't imagine my life without you." My resolve was definitely gone. Itachi looked at me, his face becoming pink. "I am truly sorry for all the trouble I have caused. This was all my fault, and yet I could not march up to you and tell you all the things I regret happening the past week and more." His words were lacing around my heart. "Money is not the root of evil, it's jealousy. That's what it came to be, but I had been foolish and careless about my actions." The laces have tightened, and my chest wrenched. "I'm sorry that we had to do this at the office, but I haven't slept much because I didn't know what you were doing or where you were. I will not let you leave today till you have forgiven me."

I looked up at him, a small smile on his face, though the pain in his eyes had thrown all animosity I had felt towards him away, along with his own pride.

"I'll be here till you have accomplished your goal."

* * *

><p>Work, work, work. It was the only thing to keep me sane despite how much it weighed on my shoulders. I tossed all my feelings out the door, the only thought of being made up to soaring high in my mind. Itachi was finally seeing eye-to-eye with me, and it was rare to win an argument with him from the time we started dating, but we did a lot of things to keep it working for the sake of Jun and for ourselves. But I didn't want to let it get to me because if anything, I cannot set myself up for failure.<p>

Itachi had apologized and sent Natsu home. She actually had come into my room to apologize before she went home too. She had told me that she did not know everything that had been happening, and was hired through a wedding planner by Itachi. She was strictly giving him advice about wedding rings based on the information he had given her because he didn't want to fuck anything up. _That stupid dunce; he lied about the assistant part._ I told her it was fine and that it wasn't her fault.

I was still prettier than her, as petty as that sounded.

I went to lunch with Itachi and the junior-Uchiha couple. Sakura basked in her glow, though she was wedded for a while now, and Sasuke was, well, Sasuke. Itachi had been like me- working. All we talked about was work, and though Sakura tried to steer the conversation, the both of us hadn't let her. She grew fed up and left with Sasuke.

"It was kind of fun seeing Sakura so frustrated with us." I chuckled, sipping from my glass of water.

"Only you'd be amused at such a thing."

"I was more amused when I found out about why you were jealous." I smirked, Itachi's face turning the colour of fluffy cotton candy. "Kakashi-sensei told me all I needed to know. You're stupid, you know that? More-so than me."

Itachi glared at me, but the blush on his face had betrayed him. "I didn't think I could become jealous over some man…"

"Ah, what's that? Did I just hear something about jealousy?"

"Komo, don't be such a child." Itachi sighed. "I was jealous of Kakashi, though I had no reason to be."

"No reason is right!" I looked at him. "Look at yourself, Itachi. You are perfect in all angles and all mirrors. You are the reason I can get out of bed without pressing the snooze button. You are also the reason I don't feel so empty anymore. How could you possibly be jealous of some old guy?" I snorted.

Itachi was silent, thinking over my words. "You're right." I looked over at his sleek hair, his tired eyes and his pursed lips. He's someone I'd never imagine myself with in a thousand lifetimes, and yet here he was, admitting all of his defeat to me. A man who surrenders everything to his lover should be appreciated.

"Itachi?"

"Hm?"

I looked him straight in the eyes, "…Marry me."

* * *

><p>AN:

This is the final chapter, but don't worry, there's an epilogue following this tomorrow, so you all should be able to get your closures tomorrow! However, if there are itching questions for you, send them to me and if I haven't touched on them in the epilogue, I'll answer them in tomorrow's A/N.** Also, any comments that come in after the epilogue will be directly replied on the reviews' page as I won't be publishing chapters for this story anymore after tomorrow. **I will do a more formal thank you tomorrow, but for now, I would like to just say that I love you all who have given my story a chance (even you, silent readers)!

I will also cover future plans about what I want to write as well. I am already writing a few things at the moment, but yeah, look forward to other things from me!

Replies:

**a Wiccan:** I'm glad my boyfriend hasn't really gotten jealous of anyone yet! Must've sucked big time!

**AriaxCantabile:** Both of them are stubborn, huh, haha. Thanks for your comment!

**Wonderfantasy:** Because, Itachi is the Ice King we all love! Thank you for your kind words!

**Mitchell343e: **Haha, you guessed right! But did you expect Komo to flat out ask him herself?

**Mina'sMadness: **You'll be surprised at what I come up with for Kisame~ Hopefully this chapter answered your question, but if it isn't clear, Komo wanted him to be direct with her because only Komo herself will know best at what she likes. Of course, surprises are wonderful, but he should have asked someone closer to her like Deidara or even Sakura, not some third-party woman.

There is one last twist in the epilogue!  
>-tofufuu<p> 


	16. Epilogue

I brushed the stray leaves away from the top of the slab of stone, placing down a bouquet of yellow roses. I crouched down, staring at the tombstone in front of me, smiling a little. "Neji, it's me, Komo."

I sat down on the cold ground, crossing my legs. "How have you been? I'm sure it's kind of lonely there, so I brought you the newspaper. Hopefully you'll find something interesting in them." I set the rolled up bunch of papers next to the bouquet. "It's been a while since we've talked, huh. I think the last time I came was probably when Jun won his award for art. Now that I think about it, that was about six years ago…"

I fiddled with my fingers, letting the wind blow my hair. "I gave birth to a daughter, and coincidentally, she was born on the same day you were! So I named her Fukahi because you always had something to talk about regarding unavoidable situations." I laughed to myself, "That was cheesy, wasn't it? Anyway, I just came to say hi. Everything in my life has been going well. I'll be seeing my parents this weekend so they can see their grand-daughter."

I stood up, brushing the dirt off my pants, looking at Neji's grave once more. "I miss you. I'll talk to you again, so don't worry because I haven't forgotten you!"

* * *

><p>"Aniki!" Fukahi chased her teenage brother around the house, Jun trying to avoid her hugs.<p>

"Jun, just hold her." I sighed, cooking up their lunches for school. "She just wants to be held."

Jun sighed, brown hair falling into his eyes as he picked up his little sister. "Fukahi, you're such a little squirt." The black-haired child clapped her hands on his cheeks, squishing them.

I smiled at them, Itachi coming into the kitchen to sweep Fukahi out of Jun's arm's, the little girl squealing in delight. "Papa!" Itachi smiled, our daughter clinging on to his neck, leaving a wet kiss on his cheek. "G'morning!"

"Good morning, Fuka." Itachi walked towards me, still holding Fukahi. "Good morning, my love." He murmured, pecking me on my lips. "Good morning, Jun." He then took a seat at the table, setting Fukahi on his lap. "Show me what you remember from yesterday at school, Fuka, Jun." Jun sat across from him at the table, the three of the chattering away about what they did at school. I grinned to myself, thinking how fortunate I was to be blessed with such a great family.

Itachi did not look a day older than thirty, but he was already thirty-nine. His hair was still long (I trimmed it for him from time to time), and was braided loosely, a couple of strands of grey hair lacing through his black curtain. He was wearing a suit in a muted gray colour scheme, reading glasses sitting at the end of his nose bridge. Still the classiest man I know alive.

I finished up cooking, setting everyone's breakfast on the table with their respective bentou's in front of them as well. "Thanks, Mama." Jun smiled at me, and I ruffled his hair. "Stop that! I'm not six anymore, you know!"

"I know you're in college right now, but I'll always remember you as that puny six year-old who called me ugly." I laughed, Itachi's eyes twinkling at us. "Say, are there any nice girls?" Jun's face turned beet red, and I could see the steam come out of his ears.

"N-No!"

"So there are!" I gave him a noogie, Jun struggling to get out of my grasp. "Tell me her name! Do I know her parents? Does she live in this neighbourhood?"

"Komo…" Itachi looked apologetic towards his son. "Let him go…"

I let go of the poor boy, Jun massaging his head. "Hoshigaki… Amemi…" His voice was quiet, but a mother knows and hears everything.

I locked eyes with Itachi, and he had the weirdest expression on his face. "Kisame's daughter?" Even Itachi was just as surprised as I was when those words left his mouth. Images of an olive-skinned girl with vibrant blue eyes hidden behind thick black frames, and pale blue hair popped into my head.

"Well, what do you see in her? Share with me, Jun." I smiled softly, the boy eating again.

Jun swallowed, thinking about it for a moment. "She's kind of like me. She got adopted by Kisame-occhan when she was younger, and we met around the time we both got into our art high school and we've been friends ever since…" He trailed off, trying to collect his thoughts. "And I guess we got closer over the summer when we worked together at the arts camp…" Hearing those words coming from Jun's mouth was strange. Never in my life have I seen Kisame as anything but a sharky colleague, best friend of my husband. though he wasn't married, he already had a daughter, and to me, that was the best feat Kisame could offer.

"Go after her." Jun and I both looked up, staring at Itachi, sporting the same reaction. Our jaws dropped, making an o-shape. "If you like her, you should at least try to pursue her before you let her go."

"Otou-san…" It was rare that Itachi blatantly gave his approval to something. "You're right. I'll try my best!" Jun seemed to be firing up, his eyes full of determination.

I clapped my son on the back, chuckling. "Jun is finally growing up!"

"Ow, Mama, that hurt!"

I grinned, rubbing his back in a soothing to ease his pain. "Alright, go to school before you become late Jun."

Jun nodded, taking his bentou with him. "I'll see you guys later. Bye, Fuka." His sister kissed him on the cheek, Jun beaming at her.

"Be safe, Jun. I love you." I gave Jun a hug before he left the house.

I looked over at Itachi who seemed to be enjoying himself as he was teaching Fukahi how to read something. "So I'm going to assume you're driving her to school today, huh."

I grinned when Itachi looked up, slightly caught in his moment. His cheeks were tinged with pink, "If that's alright with you."

"Of course it is! I have to meet up with Deidara anyway. Besides," I threw him a smirk. "She enjoys riding in the car with you more anyway. Such a Daddy's little girl already!" I tsk-ed at my husband, a low chuckling leaving his mouth.

"I can't help it. She's basically the essence of you in a small package." He looked down at her, completely absorbed in our daughter.

"Go drive her to school before you make her late already!" I laughed, Itachi finally getting up with Fukahi in his arms.

"Mama, Papa is never late!" Fukahi furrowed her eyebrows. She looked pretty much like her father, except she had my eyes and I guess my personality.

I lightly pinched her nose. "Mama knows, but let's keep it that way."

* * *

><p>"Hun, you can still have sex?" Deidara questioned, pointing a spoon at me. Of course he'd ask that. "That's a feat in itself, un."<p>

I blushed, trying to quiet the blonde down. "Not so loud, Deidara!" His café was busier than usual, hustling and bustling with college students. "I mean, I guess we try to, but having kids and work, it's quite hard."

"That's the only thing I can agree with you, un."

I chuckled. "Sasori's taking care of her today?"

Deidara nodded. "He insisted. I swear, he's more of a girl than me, un." Deidara pushed a new cup of coffee towards me. "Ever since she came into our lives, all he's been doing is making sure she's not crying. I love the man to death, but he's always so worried about her, un."

"Hey, she was born prematurely, let the man spoil someone other than you!" I laughed, Deidara throwing a sugar cube at me. "What's her name again?"

"Shifuku."

I smiled. "You two really are at bliss, huh. That's a beautiful name."

Deidara smiled genuinely at me. "Thanks. How's your family?"

I smiled, leaning a hand on my cheek. I sighed dreamily, "So perfect, Deidara. I don't think I could have it any other way."

"I still remember the day you said you weren't going to fall in love with him. And now look at you after all this shit happened, un." Deidara snorted, pushing another plate of food towards me.

I sat up straight, suddenly remembering something. "Oh yeah! Hachi gave us a phone call at the offices a couple of days ago."

Deidara rose an eyebrow. "What did she say, un?"

"Well," I took a bite out of the croissant on my plate. "She told us she was finally deemed socially appropriate so they let her out of her psychiatric ward, but she has this counsellor who's by her side all the time anyway." I swallowed the buttery goodness. "She asked about Jun-"

"And what did she ask, un?"

"She asked if she could see him, of course. I haven't told Jun yet, but I'll let him decide what he wants to do since he's eighteen now." I shrugged.

"Can you believe it, un? He's eighteen…"

I chuckled to myself. "That means I've known Itachi for eleven years only… It feels like I've known him throughout my entire life."

Deidara snickered, "Maybe you did, Komo, un."

I shook my head. "Nah, no way. Why would he be at an orphanage anyway, when he had parents?"

"Hah, that's true, un."

_I had laid down on the grassy hill, that one hill no one dared go to because it was the farthest away from the playing ground, and was on the verge of being out-of-boundaries. There was this one tree that had a really contorted looking trunk and gave the image of a ghost. I didn't mind, though, I mean, it's not like the treat could eat me up._

_I stared up into the leaves, the sun shining through them brightly, but the leaves provided enough shade to act like my sunglasses for the moment. The cicadas sang gracefully, and there was also a gentle breeze cupping around my ears. Everything was perfect, till something, well more like someone, broke the silence._

_"Komorebi…"_

_I sat up abruptly, looking around for the voice that called out my name. I looked behind the tree, at the iron fence that the orphanage was surrounded by. I spotted a boy with raven-black hair leaning against the fence, looking upwards at the same scene I was looking at. "Who are you?" I asked, peering from behind the tree._

_He turned around and my breath hitched in my throat. A beautiful boy stood before me, black eyes unblinking. "I could ask you the same."_

_I scratched my head, not knowing what to say._

_"The sun that shines through the leaves has a word. It's called-"_

_I smiled, interrupting him, "Komorebi!"_

* * *

><p>Final AN:

I'm so sad this is coming to an end, but I also feel really proud of myself for finishing my first story ever! I've written many unpublished one-shots, and I've also written a short story when I took a creative-writing course, but nothing like a Fanfiction! I am so, so, so thankful for all the nice comments of I've received and all the interactions I've been getting with everyone here! I would like to specially thank all of those who I have replied to in my previous Author Notes because you guys really made me feel like I was going in the right direction with my story, even though I rely heavily on gut and experience while I write. Thank you all!

As for future plans, I will probably be publishing a song-inspired one-shot by the end of the week, but hopefully within the next few days. I also do want to start another story, but I have yet to fully map it out, so it might take some time before I can cough it up. I suggest following me so you can get updated when I do publish something because I don't have a definite timeline yet!

I would also like to source that the art for the cover is by Sakimi chan (you can find her anywhere if you google her, but mainly on Tumblr, Deviantart and Facebook). She does wonderful real-life portraits of your favourite anime characters and I always see her at the anime conventions. God, isn't he beautiful?

I thank you all again!

Final Replies:

**Mina'sMadness:** I think we all read in the middle of the night haha! It's when I get the most inspired to write something crazy! I find all the good fanfictions before bed and I end up not sleeping till late (early!) because I wanna finish reading it! I thought it fit perfectly with her too, didn't it? Those pictures Neji existed, but he never really meant to hurt her with them. He wouldn't publish them out of spite because he cared about her way too much, even if it didn't seem like it. He disposed of them as soon as Komo transferred to his corporation. Hope that answers your question! Send me more if I you still have some!

**Wonderfantasy:** Me too! I can't believe I finished in a month! I hope you can look forward to my future works then!


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